Quakes Strike Southern B.C.—Tsunami Warning for Alaska, Hawaii

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Updated 9 a.m. Oct. 28

by Lin McNulty

A number of earthquakes struck Southern British Columbia tonight between 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. The U.S.G.S. indicates ten earthquakes have been registered in that area.

Although one of the quakes, a magnitude 7.7 quake, has generated a tsunami warning, preliminary information indicates the force of the quake would send any tsunami to Alaska and/or Hawaii.

The quakes were centered 86 miles S of Masset and 126 miles SSW of Prince Rupert.

Orcas Issues could find no indication that the San Juans are in a path of danger.

Jeff Larsen of Orcas Fire and Rescue, along with the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, indicate no tsunami warning has been issued for this area.

As of 11:17 p.m. the warning was downgraded to a Tsunami Advisory for coastal areas of British Columbia from the Washington-British Columbia border to the North tip of Vancouver Island, and is posted as “information only” for coastal areas of Washington, Oregon and California.

Additional information is available from the U.S.G.S. earthquake center website.

Late Oct. 27, Brendan Cowan, County Department of Emergency Management, issued this notification;

Just to confirm: A large (magnitude 7.7) quake occurred off of the Queen Charlotte Islands of Northern British Columbia earlier this evening. There is no current predicted impact for WA State, including the waters of the San Juans.

There has been a warning issued for Northern BC and SE AK, and recently a warning was added for Hawaii.

Latest warnings and advisories may be viewed online at: www.tsunami.gov

Again, there is no information available at this time that suggests any impact will be felt in the San Juans.