– A 7 magnitude earthquake hit southcentral Alaska this morning at 8:29 AM local time.
-From where I am, 300 miles north, I felt it as a small rumble, like some road equipment outside on the street. It lasted about a minute.
-I looked it up on Facebook, where folks always like to post “did you feel that?” and quickly realized it wasn’t a small shake, but a big one, about 12 miles north of my home town.
-My dad called, kind of shaken, wondering if I felt it and telling me the power was out and all the dishes and everything not heavy or stable was knocked over.
-At first, there was only one image that started circling around immediately:
-I texted my mom “That was a quake! felt it here.” no response. I wasn’t too worried at first. Her boyfriend called, then texted. Said he was fine, she was fine, but the store was ‘broken.’. My mom was at work at the grocery store in town, and I hadn’t seen any images yet, but saw some from others in town. Mostly broken shelves, drop ceilings, and items on the floor.
-Eventually, my mom sent this photo:
-She said her first thought, as she was cashiering for a man and his two daughters, was to tell them to get under the small area in the checkstand and cover their head. The quake lasted about a minute, but she told them to stay there because there was going to be another. Sure enough, an aftershock happened.
-After that, everyone left the store because of broken pipes and possible live electricity on the floor.
-No fatalities or injuries that anyone I know reported. As of 7 PM there were officially no fatalities or injuries directly related to it. Lots of structural damage.
-My friend’s house, down the road from my husband’s parent’s place, is a wreck. Luckily they weren’t living in it since they were trying to sell it, but it’s going to be hard to sell now.
-There have been major damages to roads and buildings. Traffic is backed up all over, but so far everyone is fine and some power is back online for people who lost it.
This is the weirdest sensation, being so far from everything I call home. But here’s a perspective of what’s going on, in our little corner of the world.
Just to recap, tomorrow will not be a normal day. But at no one is hurt.
At 8:29 AM today, November 30th, we were hit with a very intense earthquake. Over two hours later, we are still experiencing after shocks.
I’m going to cover a few things that should help.
• When you have power, fill up as many containers with water as possible. If it goes out again, you won’t be able to access water. Fill bathtubs, buckets, etc.
• First Responders are trying their best to help you if you need it. There are roads collapsed and some buildings need more attention first to assure their safety.
• Drive carefully and notice your surroundings. If the stoplights are out, treat every intersection as if it’s a four way stop.
• Be wary of glass. Walk with shoes on until you’re sure you’ve cleaned it all up or at least made it safe to walk in.
• Keep your refrigerator and freezers closed as much as possible until the power comes back on.
• Do checks for your gas lines to make sure hey haven’t been damaged.
It’s a scary experience and it’s reasonable to be scared, but don’t panic!
If anyone has any resources and tips, please feel free to add!
Please Reblog and share as much as possible to help out us Alaskan folks! Reblogs will help way more than likes.
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