COOS COUNTY, Ore. – Coos County residents faced challenges including school and work closures after a tsunami warning was issued following a magnitude 7.0 earthquake off the coast of Northern California.

According to the National Weather Service, the warning was issued Thursday morning for areas from coastal Northern California to Reedsport, Oregon.

For public safety reasons, NWS advised people to seek the highest location possible and stay away from the beach.

North Bend schools evacuated their students immediately after the alarm.

“Soon after the alarm went off on everyone’s phones, we all came together,” said Nathan Helland, an English teacher at North Bend High School. “We got our principal’s announcements over the intercom. “We got here pretty quickly and gathered on the church grounds.”

Holy Redeemer Church in North Bend was the school’s evacuation site for years because it was on high ground.

Staff and students knew where to go and the evacuation went smoothly despite the initial panic caused by the alarm, Helland said.

When the tsunami warning came, some local businesses closed their businesses and sent their employees home.

“The crew knew what to do,” said Juan Lucatero, owner of the Davey Jones Locker Market. “We just slowly and quietly left the store and everyone went to the schools to pick up their children.” Some went to higher ground and even though we weren’t trained to do it, everyone seemed to automatically know what to do, so it was “It’s good.”

Lucatero said he decided to open his business shortly after the tsunami warning was lifted at noon Thursday.

However, Coos Bay resident Kai Stufflebean, who was asked to leave work for the day because of the warning, said being prepared for a natural disaster is the most important thing a person can do.

“You never know when something like this will happen. So be prepared for it and be ready for it because we’re right on the coast and nothing bad has happened to us in a long time so it could come, it could not come, but being prepared for it is all you can do. “