In this Nov. 30, 2018 file photo, provided by Jonathan M. Lettow, people walk along Vine Road after an earthquake in Wasilla, Alaska. Alaska State Troopers are asking that people do not take selfies in front of the buckled roadway north of Anchorage, Alaska. (Jonathan M. Lettow via AP, File)

In this Nov. 30, 2018 file photo, provided by Jonathan M. Lettow, people walk along Vine Road after an earthquake in Wasilla, Alaska. Alaska State Troopers are asking that people do not take selfies in front of the buckled roadway north of Anchorage, Alaska. (Jonathan M. Lettow via AP, File)

Alaska selfie-takers told to stay off quake-buckled road

  • By RACHEL D’ORO Associated Press
  • Wednesday, December 5, 2018 1:39am
  • Newsearthquakes

ANCHORAGE — With sizable shockwaves still emanating from last week’s powerful earthquake, authorities in Alaska are urging the selfie-taking public to stay away from a road that was badly mangled.

Some photos posted on social media show people even climbing into large cracks on the buckled road in Wasilla north of Anchorage, Alaska State Trooper spokesman Jonathon Taylor said Tuesday. Signs and barricades have been set up to keep people away from the site, whose ground liquefied from the force of Friday’s 7.0 magnitude quake near Anchorage.

“It looks sort of like shattered pieces of glass, if you will, from above, which makes a very fascinating visual. But it is also unsafe to be there,” Taylor said.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

Repair crews using heavy equipment have started construction on the stretch of road, and spectators can impede that effort, he said.

Taylor hasn’t heard about anyone getting hurt, however. He said just being in the area is extremely unsafe, particularly with scores of aftershocks occurring since the earthquake, which was centered 7 miles north of Anchorage.

The latest substantial aftershock occurred shortly after 7 a.m. Tuesday.

The 4.6 magnitude temblor was felt in Anchorage. It was the 13th with a magnitude of 4.5 and above since Friday’s quake, according to U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist John Bellini.

More than 2,100 aftershocks have occurred since the first earthquake, including a 5.7 shaker that arrived within minutes. The vast majority of the aftershocks are too small to feel, Bellini said.

Friday’s earthquake damaged roads and structures, cracked roadways and collapsed highway ramps. But no catastrophic damage, injuries or deaths have been reported.

Alaska Railroad freight trains resumed runs between Anchorage and Fairbanks on Tuesday following repairs to earthquake damage that prevented trains making the trek. The trip is 350 miles each way.

Officials say passenger trains will resume service Thursday with a flagstop train run that goes part of the way to Fairbanks, followed by the resumption Saturday of the railroad’s regular winter runs.

Schools in Anchorage have been closed until Dec. 10. An elementary school in the Anchorage suburb of Eagle River that been deemed unsafe to occupy will remain closed for the rest of the year, said Morgan Duclos, a school district spokeswoman.

The American Red Cross said Tuesday it has provided a total 182 overnight stays among four emergency shelters set up in Anchorage and to the north.

Three of the shelters have closed, spokeswoman Cari Dighton said. One shelter remains open in Anchorage, serving 65 dinners Monday night and providing overnight shelter for 44 people, she said.


• By RACHEL D’ORO, Associated Press


In this Nov. 30 file photo, provided by Jonathan M. Lettow, people walk along Vine Road after an earthquake in Wasilla, Alaska. Alaska State Troopers are asking that people do not take selfies in front of the buckled roadway north of Anchorage, Alaska. (Jonathan M. Lettow via AP, File)

In this Nov. 30 file photo, provided by Jonathan M. Lettow, people walk along Vine Road after an earthquake in Wasilla, Alaska. Alaska State Troopers are asking that people do not take selfies in front of the buckled roadway north of Anchorage, Alaska. (Jonathan M. Lettow via AP, File)

More in News

Greg Brush speaks during a town hall meeting hosted by three Kenai Peninsula legislators in the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly Chambers in Soldotna, Alaska, on Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Legislators hear fishing concerns at joint town hall

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman and Reps. Justin Ruffridge and Bill Elam fielded questions and addressed a number of issues during the meeting.

Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Superintendent Clayton Holland speaks during a meeting of the KPBSD Board of Education in Soldotna, Alaska, on Monday, April 7, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
KPBSD budgeting in ‘no-win situation’

School board plans to advance budget with significant reductions in staff and programs while assuming a $680 BSA increase.

Nikolaevsk School is photographed on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Nikolaevsk, Alaska. (Delcenia Cosman/Homer News)
‘We just need more time’

Nikolaevsk advocated keeping their school open during a KPBSD community meeting last week.

Brent Johnson speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Assembly to consider request to Alaska Legislature for 5% property tax increase cap

The resolution was postponed until the next meeting amid questions from assembly members about how the cap might work.

Protesters stand along the Sterling Highway in Soldotna, Alaska, participating in the “Remove, Reverse, Reclaim” protest organized by Many Voices and Kenai Peninsula Protests as part of the nationwide 50501 effort on Saturday, April 5, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Hundreds turn out in Homer, Soldotna to protest actions of Trump administration

Signs expressed support for federal programs, services and employees, as well as diversity, democracy and science.

The setting sun over Kachemak Bay highlights Mount Augustine in the distance on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Homer, Alaska. (Delcenia Cosman/Homer News)
Augustine Island geothermal lease sale opens

Tracts are available on the northern half of the island, located in the lower Cook Inlet.

Alaska State Troopers logo.
Seldovia man found dead in submerged vehicle

83-year-old Seldovia resident Roger Wallin Sr. was declared missing on March 31.

Kenai City Manager Terry Eubank speaks during Kenai’s State of the City presentation at the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Services, projects spotlighted at Kenai’s State of the City

Mayor Brian Gabriel and City Manager Terry Eubank delivered the seventh annual address.

The Homer Public Library. File photo
In wake of executive order, peninsula libraries, museums brace for funding losses

Trump’s March 14 executive order may dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services “to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law.”

Most Read