Moderate 5.4 quake hits off south side of Kodiak Thursday afternoon

Kodiak had a moderate earthquake shortly before 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.

The 5.4 quake struck at 4:22 p.m., according to the U.S. Tsunami Warning Center. It was 16 miles deep and located in the ocean on the south of Kodiak Island.

No tsunami was expected, nor did any occur.

According to an earthquake Moment Magnitude Scale posted on the weather.gov website, a 5.4 quake is the considered moderate in strength and can cause major damage to poorly constructed buildings over small regions. At most, it says, such a quake can cause slight damage to well-designed buildings.

The site also says 800 similarly sized quakes occur each year.

Story updated to clarify location.