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Tsunami advisory cancelled for BC coast

A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia after a strong earthquake in Alaska has been cancelled.

A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia after a strong earthquake in Alaska has been cancelled.

B.C.'s provincial emergency officials called off the warning at 3:30 a.m. "No areas of coastal British Columbia are at risk," noted a message which advised that operations were standing down.

The Emergency Info BC Twitter feed noted at 2 a.m. that the advisory included Zone C, which Port Alberni is a part of.

An earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter Scale struck 102 kilometres west of Craig, Alaska at 1 a.m. PST. The area is located some 300 kilometres west of Prince Rupert.

The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Centre issued tsunami warnings for the coastal areas of British Columbia and Alaska from the north tip of Vancouver Island to Cape Suckling, Alaska.

Tsunami advisories were issued for Coastal B.C. from the Washington-B.C. border to the north tip of Vancouver Island.

Warnings denote an imminent wave with water inundating land. Advisories denote strong currents which can be hazardous to structures near the water, boats and swimmers.

The quake in Alaska was the result of shallow strike-slip on or near the plate boundary between the Pacific and North America plates, the US Geological Survey noted on it's website.

Earthquakes in Alaska ans subsequent tsunami warnings are of particular concern to Port Alberni residents.

In March 1964, an earthquake measuring 8.6 on the Richter Scale rocked Anchorage, Alaska generating two tsunamis which flooded lower Port Alberni causing significant damage.

reporter@albernivalleynews.com

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