![]() Memories of things I haven’t thought about for years. “I’ve learned a lot about my hometown of Anchorage, and you’ve jogged Memories of the Anchorage Alaska Earthquake 1964, live on. The quake was centered near Sand Point, a city of about 900 people off the Alaska Peninsula where wave levels late Monday topped 2 feet (0.61 meters), according to the National Tsunami Warning Center. They quickly stood up proudly, helped each other and together, they rebuilt Anchorage, the town they love. Some lost their homes, others their lives.Īs you learn about this horrific event, it's easy to see how Alaskans responded. In today's dollars, we're looking at $4,787,255,806 and some change.įrom reading the first-hand accounts on this page, written by survivors of the earthquake, you learned what they saw, heard and felt as the shaking continued. The Anchorage Alaska earthquake 1964 was a magnitude 9.2, or 35 times more powerful than the 1902 earthquake in San Francisco.Īt the time, estimates of damage were somewhere around $500 million dollars. The one on Good Friday, 1964 was much more intense and destructive than any other – before or since.ĭevastation first hand, still vividly recall their experiences – and always will.Īnchorage Memories thanks all the survivors who contributed their stories. There was so much destruction that Federal Disaster funds were not enough to cover the cost.įollowing the quake, much-needed supplies were flown in to Anchorage's Elmendorf Air Force Base, including a complete portable hospital from Seattle. Can you even imagine that?Ĭonservative estimates for the damage were around $500 million dollars. The newsreel footage above, narrated by Ed Herlihy, vividly shows the destruction that occurred during the 9.2 magnitude earthquake.Īs explained in the film, this earthquake was 35 times as strong as the San Francisco earthquake in 1906. Today, 4th Avenue is a thriving part of Anchorage life.įor those who survived the quake when reconstruction began, it brought a glimmer of hope for a brighter future.īONUS 1964 Earthquake Narrated Newsreel Turn up the sound and click on the video below ![]() Looking at the picture above, it's hard to believe that they were able to clean up all the devastation, let alone rebuild. This section of 4th Avenue shown above had sunk below street level, destroying many businesses during the quake.īut those who lived in Anchorage were determined to One hundred and thirty-nine people lost their lives, some in the tsunamis that followed, hitting British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. When it was finally over, the world learned that the quake was a magnitude 9.2 and that it had lasted an incredible 5-minutes. ![]() And what we saw, felt, and heard will never leave us.” Literally shaking to the core of our being. Would go on and on until the earth was but a memory.Ĭan you imagine what that must have felt like?Īnd Mary of Anchorage Memories are both survivors of the 1964 earthquake, and what they experienced was horrifying and unreal. You could hear what sounded like a powerful wind and a loud train as it roared by. It was a quiet afternoon like any other, until suddenly the earth began to shake.Īt first, it was just a quake like the many others we experienced in Anchorage.īut it quickly became violent as it slammed, convulsed, and began ripping apart buildings, roads, and sidewalks. Intensity would be highest in the fault area, but spread over the entire inner coastal region, from Bellingham in the north to Olympia in the south.As you read these stories, you'll meet people who were children, teens, or adults living in Anchorage when the earthquake struck on an otherwise quiet afternoon. Within minutes massive waves, 10 feet tall or higher, would crash into both Seattle on the east side of the sound and Bainbridge Island on the west side. This study modelled an approximately magnitude-7.5 earthquake under Puget Sound along the Seattle fault as something of a worst-case scenario.Ī magnitude-7.5 quake would be classified as a major earthquake, likely to cause intense damage. The last time an earthquake hit that fault was around 1,100 years ago, the state says, but the fault is still capable of shifting. Like much of the Pacific rim, the Washington coast is riddled with fault lines, including the Seattle Fault, which runs right underneath the sound and the city. Red alert issued in Mumbai as city records 70% of July rainfall in just six days.Why climate change could be making your hay fever worse.Wildfire rages near Yosemite’s famous giant sequoia trees.
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