Great Earthquakes In Diverse Places
Strong Earthquake rattles southern Alaska
July 9, 9:55 AM
Natural Disasters Examiner
Tony Hake
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck in southern Alaska rattling
Anchorage, Wasilla, Palmer and other area towns.
Alaska is one of the most seismically active parts of the United States
and early Thursday morning residents near Anchorage received a reminder
of that fact. A magnitude 5.0 temblor stuck in the evening hours on
Wednesday and was felt across the south-central area of the state.
Centered 50 miles north-northwest of Anchorage, the quake struck at
07:15pm and according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) was at a
depth of 12.9 miles below the surface.
The service said it had received reports of the temblor being felt as
far away as Palmer and Valdez to the east and Skwentna to the west.
Residents of Anchorage and Seward to the south also felt the shaking.
Being along the Pacific Ring of Fire, Alaska regularly experiences
earthquakes although most are small and not felt. The boundary of the
North American and Pacific tectonic plates that runs through
south-central Alaska and the Aleutian Islands is where most of the
activity occurs.
The Alaska Earthquake Information Center (AEIC) says that the state
receives from 50 to 100 earthquakes a day. Three of the 10 largest
earthquakes recorded in the world, all larger than magnitude 7.9, have
been recorded in Alaska.