Alaska’s 24/7 Earthquake Monitors on Budget Chopping Block

Alaska might lose its 24/7 earthquake monitors due to budget cuts.

The Juneau Empire reported that as of March 1, more than 25 percent of the Alaska Regional Seismic Network has been offline.

Since 2013, staff has decreased from 20 to 14 employees and funding from the state has decreased from $800,000 to a projected $588,000 next year.

The University of Alaska has been in charge of monitoring earthquakes since 1987, and university funding is also down.

State seismologist Michael West says epicenters of the earthquakes in Alaska on Monday morning would’ve been identified much sooner with up-to-date resources.

West says people need to realize what budget cuts at the university actually mean. He says building roads, bridges, saving lives, all relies on the university’s earthquake data.