Voice of America, November 4, 2002

One of the most powerful earthquakes in U.S. history has struck a sparsely populated area of central Alaska, triggering an automatic shutdown of the Trans-Alaska oil pipeline.

Officials say Sunday's earthquake measured 7.9 on the open-ended Richter scale. It struck a rural area 145 kilometers south of the central town of Fairbanks and was felt 250 miles south in the city of Anchorage.

Pipeline management officials say the earthquake damaged some of the oilway's support structures, but the pipeline remains in tact. It will be shut down until at least later Monday.

Only one minor injury has been reported. Police say an elderly woman fell and broke her arm as she tried to flee her house.

The earthquake triggered rockslides, and cracks as large as six feet wide were reported in some roads and major highways. Minor damage was reported to some homes and businesses.

Scientists say earthquakes that measure 7.0 and above are capable of causing severe damage if they hit a well-populated area.

In 1964, an Alaska earthquake measuring at least 9.2 on the Richter scale struck east of Anchorage, killing 131 people.

Sunday's earthquake in Alaska is the most powerful in a series of quakes that have struck around the world in recent days.

On Thursday, a 5.4 magnitude quake struck southern Italy, killing 29 people. Since then, earthquakes also have hit Pakistan, Iran, Indonesia and Japan.

The Alaska quake is the second major episode of seismic activity in central Alaska in the last two weeks. On October 23, an earthquake measuring 6.7 hit the same area.

Seismologists say the earthquake was felt over such a large area because it occurred at a shallow depth below the earth's surface.

One report (CNN) says people as far away as the southern state of Louisiana, some 2,500 miles from the epicenter, felt the effects of the quake.