The most powerful US earthquake in half a century left Alaska mostly unscathed, thanks to the remote location and depth of the epicenter, officials said on Thursday.

The magnitude-8.2 Chignik Earthquake, which struck just off the Aleutians in the late hours on Wednesday, was the strongest felt in the United States since an 8.7 quake ripped through the western Aleutian Islands in 1965.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage to property. Several Alaskan coastal communities were evacuated following the quake. Among them was Seward on the Kenai Peninsula, south of Anchorage, where sirens blared and residents were told to move to higher ground.