Tsunami warnings canceled along US, Canada coast

WASHINGTON: The US Tsunami Warning Centre on Tuesday lifted warnings and watches along the US and Canadian Pacific coast, deeming there was no longer a threat following a powerful earthquake off Alaska's coast.
The 7.9-magnitude quake struck off the coast of Alaska early Tuesday, briefly putting populations along the Canadian and US west coast on high alert in case of dangerous waves, but the US monitor later said "additional information and analysis have better defined the threat."
The quake struck at 0931 GMT (4.31pm Malaysia) in the Gulf of Alaska, 280km southeast of the town of Kodiak, the US Geological Survey said, revising a preliminary estimate of 8.2 magnitude. The epicentre was 10km under the seabed.
Heather Rand, who was 580km away in Anchorage, told CNN it felt like the longest earthquake she had ever experienced.
"It was a very long, slow build up. Creepy, more than anything. Definitely the longest, and I was born here," Rand said, adding the only damage was cracks in the wall. — AFP