UPDATE: 3:30 AM TUE JAN 23
ALL CLEAR! The Local Emergency Operations Center has lifted the tsunami warning for Sitka and surrounding coastal areas. It is now safe to return home to low-lying areas. A tsunami advisory remains in effect for other areas of the coast, specifically from Chignik Bay in the Aleutians to 90 miles east of Seward.
UPDATE: 3:05 AM TUE JAN 23
TSUNAMI WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT – The Sitka Emergency Operations Center is advising Sitkans to remain on high ground for the time being. A magnitude 7.9 earthquake 175 miles southeast of Kodiak occured at 12:31 a.m. this morning, prompting widespread tsunami warnings for Alaska, the Washington, Orgegon, and California coasts, Hawaii, and Samoa. Some tsunami activity (receding water, returning water) has been observed in Kodiak harbor, but so far no major wave or inundation has been reported.
ORIGINAL REPORT:
Sitka, and all areas of coastal Alaska, are under a tsunami warning following a magnitude 8.0 earthquake 175 miles south of Kodiak at 12:31 a.m. this morning (1-23-18). EVACUATION CENTERS ARE OPEN at Sitka High School and Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary School. Predicted arrival time, if a tsunami has been generated, is 2:00 a.m. in Sitka and surrounding areas.
