Bad Friday: The Great & Terrible 1964 Alaska Earthquake

On March 27, 1964, a magnitude 9.2 earthquake lasting more than five minutes rocked south central Alaska, leveling waterfronts, collapsing bridges, and crumbling landscapes. The most powerful quake in North American history and ensuing tidal waves left homes broken, children orphaned, and infrastructure decimated.

Yet, from within the tragedy also came stories of heroism, community, and perseverance from Alaskans who rode the earth as it shifted more than 14 feet, who floated atop roofs as the tsunami hit, and who searched through rubble and deserted homes amid devastation, heartbreak, and the beginning of recovery.