Coastal Tsunami Threat: A Reminder For Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH, CA — Early Thursday, four hours after the 8.2 magnitude earthquake struck off of the coast of Alaska near a remote island called Perryville, Alaska, the National Weather Service declared there was no possibility of a tsunami along the Southern California coastline.

No one was reported injured from the quake.

Laguna Beach and the Southern California coastline have the all-clear of any possible tsunami activity Thursday. However, the National Weather Service did advise that "stronger than normal currents were possible in all harbors and bays later this morning."

When a tsunami originates, waves travel outward in all directions, according to the emergency website www.Ready.gov. Once the wave approaches the shore, it builds in height depending on the coastline's topography and the ocean floor. More than one wave may generate, and the succeeding one may be larger than the one before, explaining why a small tsunami at one beach can be a giant wave a few miles away, officials explain.

In Alaska, the quake struck at 11:15 p.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday about 50 miles southeast of Perryville on the Alaskan Peninsula at a shallow depth of 29 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey and Alaska Earthquake Center.

The earthquake was felt throughout the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak, the Alaska Earthquake Center said.