A man from a tiny village in Alaska became a viral hit on social media after he livestreamed a tsunami warning after midnight on Tuesday.
Larry Pestrikoff, a resident of Ouzinkie, near Kodiak, became a celebrity overnight when his Facebook Live footage of a tsunami that never came generated 141,000 views.
Pestrikoff’s livestream broadcast just before 1am on Tuesday was prompted by a tsunami warning triggered by a 7.9 magnitude earthquake off the Alaskan coast.
The 48-year-old janitor recorded live footage of the harbor near his home in anticipation of a massive tidal wave, but it never arrived.
Larry Pestrikoff (left), a resident of Ouzinkie, near Kodiak, became a celebrity overnight when his Facebook Live footage of a tsunami that never came generated 141,000 views
Nonetheless, viewers fell in love with Pestrikoff’s narration and his voice, which seemed to have a calming effect.
Many Alaskans were in a panic after receiving the tsunami warnings.
Hundreds of motorists were seen fleeing the coastal areas for high ground just in case of impending disaster.
But Pestrikoff’s livestream, which only showed shots of a few lights out in the harbour, turned out to be an important source of information, particularly for the news media.
Pestrikoff’s livestream broadcast just before 1am on Tuesday was prompted by a tsunami warning triggered by a 7.9 magnitude earthquake off the Alaskan coast
‘I didn’t expect anything like this at all,’ he told the Anchorage Daily News.
‘I’ve gone live before like at the air show or something up in Anchorage and I think only two or three people might have watched.’
Pestrikoff endeared himself to people, so much so that one Nevada resident started a GoFundMe page to help him pay off his debts.
‘Larry did this kind deed with no preconceived notion of notoriety or fame,’ wrote Seth Schrenzel of Gerlach, Nevada.
‘He did it because he was there and he cared.’ Schrenzel said he wanted to help Pestrikoff after he casually mentioned during the livestream that he needed to pay off credit card debt.
‘This campaign is designed to give what was not asked,’ Schrenzel wrote.
‘Namely, I know viewers of his livestream are appreciative of his effort to show us what was happening on the ground, and are happy to give a little as a show of gratitude.’
The 48-year-old janitor recorded live footage of the harbor near his home in anticipation of a massive tidal wave, but it never arrived
In just two days, the GoFundMe campaign has raised over $800 to benefit ‘Larry’s Fund’, nearly reaching the goal of $1,000.
Pestrikoff told the Anchorage Daily News that he was watching a show on Netflix just after 12:30am on Tuesday when the earthquake hit.
He said it ‘felt more like a jiggle.’
The tsunami warning triggered sirens in the village, which has a population of 150 people.
The alert said that a tsunami wave could hit Kodiak within 90 minutes.
Pestrikoff told the Anchorage Daily News that he was watching a show on Netflix just after 12:30am on Tuesday when the earthquake hit. He said it ‘felt more like a jiggle’
The tsunami warning triggered sirens in the village, which has a population of 150 people. The alert said that a tsunami wave could hit Kodiak within 90 minutes
Hundreds of motorists fled the Alaskan coastal areas and moved to higher ground after the tsunami warning was issued
Kodiak, which is in southern Alaska, is just minutes away from Ouzinkie.
So Pestrikoff took out his cell phone and started livestreaming.
The image that appeared on the screen showed pitch black darkness with just a few lights illuminating the harbour.
During the two-hour livestream, Pestrikoff talked about a variety of topics, like the water levels, his credit card bills, the price of gas, and his dying tomato plant.
He also talked about his daughter.
‘This video is of me sitting and waiting for a tsunami to roll in,’ he said in the video.
‘It’s been over an hour and the water hasn’t moved.’
Pestrikoff said that he never intended for the broadcast to be a lengthy one.
But as his audience grew, he felt obligated to continue.
When his phone battery was dying, ‘people kept saying, “Plug your phone in, Larry! Plug your phone in!”’ he said.
Facebook users from as far as Australia, Europe, and Japan tuned in. They complimented him on his voice, which they said was fit for radio.
‘They said it was soothing,’ he said. ‘I’m like, “OK, glad it helped”.’
After he granted Fox News permission to use his livestream, he joked: ‘Maybe Donald Trump’s watching?
‘Hello, Mr. President.’