A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Wednesday afternoon just south of the northern Aleutian Islands in Alaska. The epicenter was roughly 600 miles southwest of Anchorage, Alaska. A tsunami warning was in effect for less than an hour,

A tsunami warning that was later downgraded was issued for several coastal communities after the earthquake struck south of Sand Point.

Wednesday's magnitude 7.3 earthquake off Alaska's Aleutian Islands chain struck in a region that has experienced a handful of powerful quakes within the last five years - including one that shook communities almost exactly two years earlier.