Magnitude 7.9 quake off Alaska prompts tsunami fear for North America

Quake magnitude was initially measured at 8.2; Hawaii no longer seen at risk of tsunami

A magnitude 7.9 earthquake hit the Gulf of Alaska in the early hours of Tuesday, prompting warnings of a possible tsunami down the west coast of North America.

Emergency sirens sounded in Kodiak, a town of 6,100 people on Alaska's Kodiak Island, one of the closest settlements to the epicenter.

"This is a tsunami warning. This is not a drill. Please get out to higher ground," said the announcer on local public radio station KMXT. "If you are on the flats, get up on one of the hills ... Just go high."

There were no immediate reports of damage or injury.

The quake, initially