Tsunami warning for Northern California, Oregon called off
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A tsunami warning was issued and later called off on Thursday after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Northern California.
The big picture: The National Weather Service cancelled the alert just before noon local time, saying there was no destructive tsunami recorded and no such danger to areas that received warnings, including San Francisco.
Driving the news: The earthquake struck around 10:44 am PT off the coast of Humboldt County and was felt across the Bay Area, according to USGS.
- According to information from the U.S. Geological Survey, strong shaking likely affected areas near Fortuna and Eureka, Calif., closest to the epicenter offshore.
- The tsunami was originally expected to strike San Francisco beginning at around 12:10pm local time (3:10pm ET), and other areas along the California and Oregon coasts as early as 11:10am, according to a National Weather Service bulletin.
- FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell was briefed on the potential tsunami.
Catch up quick: Authorities initially issued a tsunami warning ranging from southwestern Oregon on the northern end to the Santa Cruz area in California on the southern end.
- The Berkeley Police Department issued evacuation orders at the time, saying people in certain areas faced immediate danger and should leave.
- The tsunami warning was in place for just over an hour before the NWS called it off.
Editor's note: This breaking news story has been updated throughout, including substantial updates after the National Weather Service called off the tsunami warning.
