History of Valdez, AK

Leslie, Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Bear Paw RV Park, Valdez, AK

Today we visited the Valdez Museum Annex devoted to the 1964 Earthquake.  On March 27, 1964 a 8.6 earthquake struck Valdez.  An undersea landslide triggered huge waves, more than 30 people were swept out to sea.  The town was largely destroyed.  The old town was located on a delta created by the Valdez glacier and  composed of consolidated silt and gravel.  It was unstable under seismic conditions.  Flooding was common.  After the earthquake the US Army Corps of Engineers determined that the old site was unsafe.  Many buildings were condemned  and ultimately the town council determined that the town should be moved.  Although after the earthquake the town did continue to operate in a fashion for two years until the new town was ready for occupancy, life was difficult.  Water was available to most buildings via a temporary above ground temporary pipes. Within two years the town had moved 4 miles to the new site. Fifty-two buildings were moved to the new site.  New Valdez has stringent building codes so the buildings being moved had to be upgraded to the new standard.   The new town is located at higher elevation (barely) and is located behind some breakwaters.  It is also positioned on better compacted earth and most importantly suffered little damage during the 1964 earthquake.   Alaska suffers frequent earthquakes.  Ordinarily they are not a problem.  The 1964 earthquake was the strongest to have hit the north American continent.