Tsunami Warning Lifted After 7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast

Cars leave Homer Spit in Homer, Alaska, on July 16, 2025. Photo: Tim Hatfield via AP

ANCHORAGE — A powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake rocked the Gulf of Alaska on Wednesday afternoon, triggering a tsunami warning for a vast stretch of the state’s coastline. The quake hit about 50 miles south of Sand Point on the Alaska Peninsula, prompting immediate evacuation alerts across affected regions.

Later that day, the tsunami warning was cancelled. According to CBS News, authorities downgraded it to an advisory, which warns people to stay out of the water and away from beaches and waterways. 

The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake occurred at 12:37 p.m. local time with a depth of approximately 12 miles, approximately 54 miles south of Sand Point on Popof Island. The initial tsunami warning spanned the Alaska Peninsula, parts of the Aleutian Islands, and other coastal areas, with evacuation orders from Homer to Unimak Pass.

Authorities urged residents in low-lying coastal areas, including the communities of Kodiak, Unalaska, and King Cove, to seek higher ground. 

While the initial earthquake magnitude was reported as 7.2, it was later upgraded to 7.3.

This earthquake follows a history of significant seismic activity in Alaska, a region prone to powerful quakes due to its location along the Pacific “Ring of Fire.” Notably, a 9.2 magnitude earthquake in 1964 remains the largest ever recorded in North America.

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