Swarm of earthquakes in Alaska puzzles scientists

Source: Associated Press

Jun 16, 6:30 PM EDT
Swarm of earthquakes in Alaska puzzles scientists
By RACHEL D'ORO
Associated Press

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- A moderate earthquake shook northwest Alaska on Monday, the fifth temblor of the same magnitude since April in an area with otherwise little activity, seismologists said.

The magnitude-5.7 quake struck at 4:01 a.m. Monday northeast of the village of Noatak, the Alaska Earthquake Center reported. As with other temblors in the earthquake swarm, the quake was felt in Noatak, an Inupiat Eskimo community of 560 people.

"It woke me up," said resident Alvin Ashby. "Some people slept through it."

People there aren't used to earthquakes, and these have some residents worried, said Ashby, who has lived in the community most of his life.

Before the swarm that began April 18, the last known quake of similar size in the area was a magnitude-5.5 quake that occurred in 1981, earthquake center seismologist Natasha Ruppert said.


Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_ALASKA_QUAKE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-06-16-18-30-16