Massive storm that tore through Alaska moves into Rockies (Reuters)

(Reuters) – The hurricane-like storm that tore through Alaska earlier this week moved into the Rocky Mountains on Saturday, triggering winter storm and high wind warnings across the region.

Corey Mead, a meteorologist at the National Storm Center in Norman, Oklahoma, said the system, which was likened to a Category 3 hurricane when it hit Alaska on Thursday, had weakened as it moved south.

But he said it still remained "fairly strong" and was already causing isolated blizzard-like conditions in some parts of the northern Rockies.

Otherwise, weather conditions across the continental United States were relatively quiet.

The only exception was in the southern high plains, especially eastern New Mexico, the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma, where Mead said high winds and low humidity were raising the risk of wildfires.

Over the past year, firefighters in Texas have responded to more than 20,000 fires that have burned a record 3.5 million acres, prompting the Texas Forest Service to declare this the worst fire season in the state's history.

(Reporting by James B. Kelleher)

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No sign of young killer whale in Alaska river (AP)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – There's been no sign in two days of a juvenile killer whale last seen swimming in a river in southwest Alaska, a federal fisheries official said late Monday.

The juvenile whale was last spotted swimming downriver in the Nushagak River on Saturday, the same day the carcasses of two other adult orcas, believed to be females, were discovered in the river, NOAA Fisheries spokeswoman Julie Speegle said in a statement.

An aerial survey of the river Monday afternoon failed to find the young whale, she said.

Four veterinarians were scheduled to fly to Dillingham on Tuesday to perform necropsies on the two adult whales. Leading the effort will be a killer whale specialist from SeaWorld in San Diego.

It will likely take two days to complete the necropsies, Speegle said. According to NOAA, female killer whales can weigh up to 16,500 pounds and be 28 feet long. Preliminary results possibly could be ready later this week.

The whales have been swimming in the Nushagak River for about three weeks in what federal biologists said was an unprecedented trek for Alaska killer whales.

The whales swam about 30 miles up the Nushagak River to a spot just downriver from the village of Ekwok, which is about 285 miles southwest of Anchorage.

It had been hoped all three would swim downriver and eventually find their way back to Bristol Bay.

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Warning system glitches found after Alaska quake (AP)

JUNEAU, Alaska – Glitches were reported in Alaska's tsunami warning system after Thursday evening's 7.2-magnitude earthquake in the Aleutian chain, causing some anxiety and bewilderment among residents.

State Department of Homeland Security spokesman Jeremy Zidek said Friday that tsunami warning messages were sent late via the emergency alert system to TV and radio stations, about the same time the warning was being canceled.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough reported its sirens, tied to a weather radio system, only went off when the alert was canceled. Normally, there's no siren when a warning is canceled, emergency management director Eric Mohrmann said.

"It's unfortunate it occurred" that way, he said Friday. "It's not a perfect system, that's for sure."

The reason for the glitches wasn't immediately clear, though Zidek said the state does not rely on just one system to alert communities to possible dangers. For example, he said officials also send emails and make calls, alerting communities to possible impending dangers. In all, 14 communities were notified Thursday, he said. Mohrmann said he learned of the tsunami warning by email.

It's not the only emergency management communication problem for the state this week.

Alaska State Troopers Capt. Barry Wilson told the Anchorage Daily News the agency is investigating glitches in this week's Amber Alert, including breaks in audio for some radio and TV listeners. There were also problems with television text scrolls that either didn't appear or moved too fast, and not everyone who signed up for Amber Alert email and text message alerts received them.

The tsunami warning glitches were cast more as the exception than the rule in a state where earthquakes are common occurrences.

Thursday's quake, a magnitude 7.2, according to the Alaska Earthquake Information Center, shook a huge section of Alaska's Aleutian Islands. Centered about 122 miles east of Atka and about 1,200 miles southwest of Anchorage, it was jarring enough to send residents of some small coastal towns, such as Unalaska, to higher ground. There were no immediate reports of damage.

It hit just after 7 p.m. Thursday.

Unalaska's mayor, Shirley Marquardt, was at the airport. The shaking wasn't violent but it lasted "long enough." Officials decided to evacuate the low-lying city as a precaution. This time of year, the community is bustling. The hotel, which is built around sea level, like many other buildings in town, was full, she said.

"We stand to lose everything in a tsunami," Marquardt said.

Unalaska City Manager Chris Hladick estimated that thousands of people evacuated to higher ground until they received the all-clear. He said the process ran smoothly, with sirens blaring and officials going through neighborhoods to rouse residents. Ships were sent out of the harbor.

Atka resident Rodney Jones said the shaking he felt lasted about 20 seconds and was "just a little rumbly."

He said it appeared all of the town's 61 residents moved to higher ground upon hearing the tsunami warning, which he heard issued over CB radio. Townspeople gathered on a high hill for about an hour, near the city's new water tank.

During their wait for the all-clear signal, a priest with the town's Russian Orthodox Church recited prayers, Jones said.

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Associated Press writer Mark Thiessen contributed from Anchorage.

Becky Bohrer can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/bbohrer.

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Major quakes strike in Pacific off Alaska (Reuters)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) – A major earthquake of 7.4 magnitude struck in the Pacific Ocean more than 1,000 miles west of Anchorage on Thursday, prompting a brief tsunami warning for part of the remote Aleutian Islands chain.

No damage or injuries were reported. The warning, which extended for roughly 800 miles -- from Unimak Pass, northeast of Dutch Harbor, westward to Amchitka Pass, west of Adak Island -- was canceled after a little more than an hour.

A tsunami wave measuring just 6 centimeters tall was recorded at Nikolski, a tiny Aleut village on the island of Umnak, and a 10-centimeter wave was observed at Adak, said Becki Legatt, a spokeswoman for the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer, Alaska.

The coast of the entire Alaska peninsula and all of the Alaska mainland were never considered to be threatened.

The quake struck shortly after 7 p.m. local time at a depth of about 25 miles. A second tremor of magnitude 7.2 hit in the same vicinity of the Aleutians a half-minute later, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Quakes of 7 to 8 magnitudes and higher are relatively common in the Aleutians but are generally of little consequence because the island chain is so remote and sparsely populated.

"This is a very seismically active area," said Randy Baldwin, a USGS geophysicist with the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colorado.

A tsunami warning means all coastal residents in the warning area who are near the beach or in low-lying regions should move immediately to higher ground and away from harbors and inlets, including those sheltered directly from the sea.

(Reporting by Yereth Rosen in Anchorage; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Philip Barbara)

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No tsunami for coastal Alaska after strong quake (AP)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A magnitude-7.2 earthquake shook a large swath of Alaska's Aleutian Islands on Thursday evening, sending residents of small coastal towns to higher ground as officials issued a tsunami warning in the temblor's wake.

The quake was centered about 122 miles east of Atka, about 1,200 miles southwest of Anchorage. It was recorded at a depth of 26 miles, the Alaska Earthquake Information Center said.

The quake was felt through the central Aleutians and as far east as Dutch Harbor and Unalaska, but no damage was reported, said Jeremy Zidek, a spokesman with the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

"It was shaking, it was just a little rumbly" and lasted about 20 seconds, said Atka resident Rodney Jones.

The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center posted a tsunami warning for some coastal areas of Alaska, but canceled the warning about an hour after the quake. The warning covered an area from 80 miles northeast of Dutch Harbor to about 125 miles west of Adak.

Jones said it appeared all of the town's 61 residents took to higher ground when they heard the tsunami warning, which he heard issued over CB radio. The townspeople gathered on a high hill for about an hour, near the city's new water tank.

During their wait for the all-clear signal, he said a priest with the town's Russian Orthodox Church recited prayers.

In Dutch Harbor, longshoreman Jim Paulin said warning sirens caused also caused hundreds of people to begin climbing up a nearby hill.

"Right now there's hundreds of people up on the hilltop," he told The Associated Press before the all-clear was given. "I can look across the bay and see people on another hilltop."

After the tsunami warning was canceled, he said everybody was "calm. It seems like everybody's kind of enjoying it. It's good weather."

Paulin said no one seemed panicked because the city has been evacuated in the past. But, he said, "It's better to be safe than sorry."

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Associated Press writers Kathy McCarthy in Seattle and Michelle Price in Phoenix contributed to this report.

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