Huge quake of magnitude 8.2 on Alaska Peninsula triggers tsunami alert

A shallow earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck the Alaska Peninsula late on Wednesday, prompting tsunami warnings in the region, authorities said.

There were no immediate reports on loss of property or life.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake, which struck at 10:15 p.m. local time (0615 GMT Thursday), was at a depth of 35 km.

In Alaska, the National Tsunami Warning Center (NTWC) issued warnings for southern parts, the Peninsula, and Pacific coastal areas from Hinchinbrook Entrance to Unimak Pass. It also issued a “tsunami watch” for the U.S. state of Hawaii.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) said the possibility of a tsunami threat to the U.S. state of Hawaii and the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam was being investigated.

Japan’s Meteorological Agency was investigating whether there was a possibility of a tsunami hitting Japan, the public broadcaster NHK said.

Authorities in New Zealand also said they were assessing if there was any danger to coastal regions.

The U.S. NTWC said it was evaluating the level of tsunami danger for other U.S. and Canadian Pacific coastal areas.

The tremor struck about 91 km east-southeast of Perryville in Alaska. It was about 800 km (500 miles) from Anchorage, Alaska’s biggest city. It was followed by seven aftershocks, two of them above magnitude 6.0, according to USGS.