Magnitude-7.1 Earthquake Shakes Southern Alaska

An earthquake of magnitude 7.1 struck the southern coast of Alaska early Sunday, the U.S. Geological Survey says. The quake, which was centered just over 160 miles southwest of Anchorage, hit at 1:30 a.m. local time (5:30 a.m. EST), waking up many residents of Alaska's largest city.

It was followed by dozens of aftershocks, according to the Alaska Earthquake Center.

The Nationl Weather Service's Tsunami Center says there's no anticipated risk of a tsunami, due to the depth of the quake.

Monica Gokey of Alaska Public Media reports that residents from Fairbanks to Juneau posted on social media that they felt the earthquake. Initial reports didn't indicate any severe damage, she says: " Shortly after 2:00 a.m., the Anchorage Police Department reported that it has not received any major reports of damage or injury as a result of the strong earthquake."

Thousands of people have lost power and 22 homes have been evacuated over concerns of a potential gas leak, local TV station KTUU reports.

On Twitter, Alaskans who were rudely awakened by the shaking used the hashtag #akquake to share their photos and stories — and their jokes.

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