ANCHORAGE, Alaska _ A large earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.0 struck Alaska near Anchorage early Friday morning, damaging roads and buildings, knocking out power and sending people fleeing from buildings and to safety beneath door jambs.
The epicenter was just north of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, according to the Alaska Earthquake Center. It violently shook the most populous region of the state as people were settling in to work and school.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
There were several aftershocks, including a sharp jolt felt widely in Anchorage around 10:26 a.m. and another series of aftershocks just before 11 a.m. At least three of them were 5.0.
The earthquake shook buildings violently, cracking walls, leaving some store floors a mess, and leaving desks covered with dust from ceiling tiles.
The tsunami warning for Southcentral Alaska including Kenai, Kodiak and the shores of Cook Inlet was canceled around 10 a.m.
There were several reports of serious damage. The Glenn Highway was closed north of Eagle River because of damage and an onramp at the interchange of International Airport Road and Minnesota Boulevard collapsed.
State transportation officials were fielding reports of damage on all high-priority roads including three major locations on the Glenn Highway, spokeswoman Shannon McCarthy said Friday late morning. The southbound Eagle River bridge is the area of most concern, McCarthy said. A section of highway at Thunderbird Falls has cracked. The Palmer exit off the highway is closed.
Vine Road near Wasilla also suffered major damage.
"This was a big one," McCarthy said, saying that crews are checking damage as quickly as they can. "We have everyone out in the field."
The Seward Highway was closed at mile 112 _ McHugh Creek _ in both directions because of a rockslide, said Alaska Department of Transportation spokeswoman Meadow Bailey.
All Alaska Railroad operations are shut down due to severe damage at the railroad's Anchorage Operations Center on Ship Creek, including the dispatch center, according to spokesman Tim Sullivan. The center is closed by flooding from burst pipes and the power is out.
No trains were running when the quake hit, but service can't resume until crews assess damage, Sullivan said. It will be a day or two before that happens.
There are crews out checking roads and bridges all around Alaska "because this was felt as far as Tok and Valdez," she said.
There were reports of power and phone outages in the region. Traffic was backed up throughout Anchorage as people headed home to check on damage, and some traffic lights had gone dark.
The Southcental Alaska gas utility, Enstar, is assessing the situation for damage, officials said.
Port spokesman Jim Jager texted no obvious serious structural damage or tank/pipeline leaks. Tanker tied to the dock appears fine. Most of their power is back on.
Alaska Airlines suspended its operations at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport until at least 11:30 a.m. Friday to allow for a safety assessment of the facility and infrastructure, spokeswoman Ann Johnson said in an email. Arrivals and departures in and out of Anchorage were paused during that time, she said.
Johnson also directed passengers to the Alaska Airlines blog for updates.
Providence Alaska Medical Center was trying to dispel rumors even from national media that a part of the building collapsed, a spokesman said.
The building was not damaged, but the hospital is assessing damage from water leaks, and fallen ceiling tiles, spokesman Michael Canfield said.
The trans-Alaska pipeline was shut down as a precaution, according to Alaska Pipeline Services.
Chugach Electric Association, providing service in much of Anchorage, said on a Facebook post it has "power outages throughout" its system.
"Please do not approach any downed power lines or other equipment and facilities," the utility said.
"We are doing assessment and inspection right now. We need to inspect our equipment for damage before we can re-energize," it said. "The power outage map on our website is currently not accurate. We will continue to update throughout the day."
Anchorage Municipal Light and Power, providing service in midtown and north Anchorage, said on Facebook it is "assessing any damages or power outages as a result of the earthquake."
Darcy Amelia, a dental assistant in Eagle River, said the two-story medical plaza where she was working was quickly shut down after pipes burst in the quake. Cabinets flew open and dental tools and other items crashed to the ground.
"There was like a roof leak, so there was no lights and power in the building," Amelia said.
Clients and workers fled toward door jams, under tables and outside, she said.
"We had a waiting room full of patients but everyone moved swiftly" to safety, she said.
Pat Hansen, a statistician who works at the Department of Fish and Game on Raspberry Road, was sitting at her desk when the rattling started, she said.
"People went running out of the building, tons of computer monitors went down, bookshelves went down," she said. "I heard a part of the building sunk 10 inches."
As she drove home to check on her house, emergency vehicles kept passing, sirens wailing. A plume of smoke from a house fire rose up from a nearby neighborhood. Traffic on Minnesota Drive was at a standstill and there were a number of cars in the ditch.
"Every traffic light I passed was out," she said.
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