Magnitude 5.1 earthquake shakes Alaska, British Columbia

Looking down the Denali Fault line, the low point between various ridges in the distance. NPS Photo

JUNEAU — A Magnitude 5.1 earthquake shook Alaska about 135 miles (217 kilometers) northwest of the state’s capital city Juneau.

Coincidentally, the City and Borough of Juneau’s Disaster Preparedness Expo was winding down as the earthquake hit Saturday afternoon. No damage was immediately reported.

The National Weather Service stated there was no tsunami threat from the earthquake.

The quake was centered in the narrow sliver of British Columbia, which separates Southeast Alaska and the Yukon. It shook near the Eastern Denali Fault — the same area that experienced a series of larger earthquakes earlier this year.

That string of earthquakes topped out with a magnitude 6.3, which was 10 times stronger than the one felt on Saturday.

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