In brief: Quake shakes southern Alaska
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A powerful earthquake rocked Alaska’s largest city and other parts of the state’s most populated region on Thursday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
The earthquake struck with a magnitude of 5.2 shortly after 11 a.m., according to seismologists at the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center. It was centered about 50 miles southwest of Anchorage, said tsunami program manager Cindi Pressler.
The quake occurred 30 miles below ground and rumbled for several seconds. The Alaska Earthquake Information Center said the event was widely felt in the Kenai Peninsula and Cook Inlet regions, with the strongest shaking occurring in the Peninsula communities of Sterling and Soldotna.
Costco workers win Powerball pot
MELVILLE, N.Y. – The 20 oversized checks, each made out for $201.9 million, seemed appropriate for these lottery winners.
A group of 20 Long Island Costco employees calling themselves the “1937 Flatbush Avenue Dodgers” in tribute to the 73-year-old Brooklyn baseball fan among them who bought the winning ticket, stepped forward Thursday to claim first prize in a June 1 Powerball jackpot.
The winners, who opted to take a lump sum payout instead of stretching their winnings over 20 years, will actually share $70.2 million after taxes, New York state lottery officials said.
The winners haven’t decided whether they will keep working at the massive store. The employees include pharmacists, security guards, meat cutters, merchandise managers and supervisors.
Winner Kim Karkota explained that the group each chipped in $5 a week and pooled their money for the lottery tickets. She said the group had only been playing Powerball together for about a month when they hit the jackpot.
U2 guitarist’s project rejected
LOS ANGELES – Despite promises by U2 guitarist The Edge that it would be one of the greenest developments in the world, California’s coastal development agency rejected a proposal for five mansions overlooking Malibu citing concerns that it would irrevocably damage the environment.
On Thursday, staff told the California Coastal Commission that approving such a project would set a precedent and invite other large developments to rugged, environmentally sensitive locations. Commissioners voted 8-to-4 against the proposal.