A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck Cook Inlet, Alaska, causing moderate to heavy damage across Southcentral Alaska and felt as far as Juneau.
Key Facts
- Magnitude
- 7.1 Richter/Moment scale
- Distance from Anchorage
- 162 miles (261 km)
- Distance from Homer
- 65 miles (105 km)
- Farthest felt location
- Juneau, ~700 miles (1,100 km) southeast
- Local time of occurrence
- 1:30 AM AKST, January 24, 2016
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Cook Inlet region of Alaska sits within a seismically active zone along the Pacific Ring of Fire, where tectonic stresses between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate regularly produce significant seismic activity, making the area prone to large earthquakes.
On January 24, 2016, at 1:30 AM AKST, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck near Old Iliamna in the Cook Inlet region of Alaska. The epicenter was approximately 162 miles from Anchorage and 65 miles from Homer, and the shaking was felt across Southcentral Alaska, the Kenai Peninsula, and as far away as Juneau.
The earthquake caused moderate to heavy damage to homes, roads, and businesses over a wide area of Southcentral Alaska. Its effects were felt across a vast region spanning roughly 700 miles to Juneau, prompting widespread concern and emergency assessments throughout the affected communities.