A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake has struck just off the coast of eastern Russia, resulting in tsunami warnings across the Pacific, including Japan, the Philippines, Hawai’i, the US West Coast and some Pacific island nations.
According to CNN, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) measured the earthquake at 8.8 magnitude, with an epicentre about 120 kilometres southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky at a depth of 20.7 kilometres. Multiple aftershocks have occurred since the initial quake.
Japanese broadcaster NHK said evacuation orders had been issued by the government for some areas.
A map on the Japan Meteorological Agency website shows a tsunami warning in place for most of the country’s eastern seaboard, with a ‘tsunami advisory’ issued for parts of the northwest and southeast. A tsunami forecast, with ‘slight sea level changes’, is in place for most of the western Japanese coastline. The agency has not issued a major tsunami warning – the highest alert category – for any part of Japan.
The earthquake is the largest since a 9-magnitude quake struck Japan in March 2011, causing massive tsunamis that claimed the lives of around 20,000 people. In January 2024, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck parts of Japan’s Ishikawa Prefecture.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Tsunami Warning Center has issued a tsunami warning (its highest alert level) for Hawai’i, where waves of up to three metres are predicted to strike.
According to Honolulu’s Star-Advertiser, residents and others on Oahu’s coastlines have been advised to evacuate, with sirens to be sounded for flood inundation zones.
Hawaiian Governor Josh Green declared an emergency ahead of the tsunami expected to reach the state within hours, the New York Times reports.
Sirens and cellphone alerts blared across Hawaii’s islands on Tuesday afternoon. The first wave was expected to arrive at 7:10 p.m. local time, the state’s emergency authorities said.
In addition, the centre has issued a tsunami advisory for the U.S. West Coast, including California, Oregon and Washington.
The advisory also includes parts of British Columbia, Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and areas of south and southeast Alaska.
People in the affected areas are advised to stay off beaches and out of the ocean, the LA Times reports.
ANZ update
The government’s Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre says there is “no tsunami threat” to Aussie shores.
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s National Emergency Management Agency told residents to expect “strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges at the shore”, forecast to hit at around midnight (NZT).
According to RNZ, the warning covers all coastal areas around New Zealand.
“People on boats, live-aboards and at marinas should leave their boats/vessels and move onto shore,” NEMA said.
“Do not return to boats unless instructed by officials. There is no need to evacuate other areas unless directly advised by local civil defence authorities.”
Island impact
In Southeast Asia, the Philippines and Indonesia have also issued warnings following the earthquake.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (phivols) said some parts of the Philippines can expect to see waves up to 1 metre arriving at around 1.30pm (local time).
Indonesia’s geophysics agency issued a warning that waves of less than 0.5 metres could hit some parts of the country on Wednesday afternoon, CNN reports.
Elsewhere, US Pacific territories including Guam, the Northern Marianas have been urged to move inland, while a tsunami advisory has also been issued for American Samoa.
“Officials have always kept residents updated on what to do and where to go if there is a tsunami,” Guam-based journalist Naina Rao told the ABC.
The broadcaster reports that there is a tsunami watch in place for Palau and a tsunami alert for Tonga.
