7.2 magnitude earthquake shakes the coast of Alaska and generates tsunami alert

New York.- The National Weather Service (NWS) of the United States issued a tsunami alert on the coast of Alaska, in the United States, after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake was recorded in the state.

“A TSUNAMI WARNING is issued for parts of Alaska after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Sand Point, Alaska, at 12:38 p.m. (Alaska time) on July 16,” reported the NWS on its X profile.

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According to NWS data, the earthquake originated about 87 kilometers south of the city of Sand Point, the most populated on Popof Island – off the coast of the Alaskan peninsula – around 4:37 PM Eastern Time (8:37 PM GMT). In addition to Sand Point, other Alaskan cities such as Cold Bay or Kodiak are also threatened by the possibility of a tsunami. The National Weather Service urged residents of the area to evacuate to higher ground or move to a higher floor of a building. For now, no further information is available. Michigan Technological University (MIT) indicates that an earthquake is capable of causing “severe damage” if it has a magnitude between 7 and 7.9.