SIXTY YEARS AGO TODAY: ‘Great cracks opened in the ground, buildings twisted and fell:’ Nine photos of devastation from the 1964 great Alaska quake. “Sixty years ago today, March 27, 1964, the second most powerful earthquake on the planet shook Alaska and affected every other province and state along the west coast. Measuring 9.2 and lasting about four and a half minutes, the quake became the largest ever recorded in North America. A fault line almost 1,000 kilometres burst open and tremors were recorded far inland. Motion from the earthquake was noticed as far east as Florida. In Calgary, an Easter service at a Ukrainian church was delayed when a 1,000-pound chandelier began swaying above the heads of church goers.”