A major earthquake at northern California

A major earthquake struck about 80 miles off the coast of northern California on Tuesday night, briefly prompting a tsunami warning along the &to=http:// english.pravda.ru/region/2002/11/19/39645_.html ' target=_blank>Pacific coast. There were no immediate reports of damages or injuries.

The 7.0-magnitude quake struck at about 7:50 p.m. southwest of the coastal community of Crescent City and 300 miles northwest of San Francisco, according to the &to=http:// english.pravda.ru/economics/2003/03/17/44515.html ' target=_blank>U.S. Geological Survey Web site.

A tsunami warning was briefly in effect from the California-Mexico border north to Vancouver Island, British Columbia, but was called off about an hour after the quake hit, reports FOX News.

According to Reuters, a major 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit at 7:50 p.m. local time 91 miles west of Crescent City, California, a rugged coastal community hit by a deadly tsunami in 1964.

Emergency officials initially issued a warning that a tsunami could hit anywhere from California's border with Mexico all the way up to Canada, but then lifted that warning.

"The risk of a tsunami hitting at this point is gone," California Emergency Services spokesman Eric Lamoureux said from the state capital Sacramento.

In Crescent City, about 300 miles north of San Francisco near the border with Oregon, local residents left low-lying areas for higher ground after an emergency warning siren sounded.