A major seismic event measuring magnitude 8.8 struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday, unleashing significant tsunami waves and prompting evacuation orders across the Pacific region, including Japan and Hawaii, Reuters reported.
The shallow earthquake, occurring at a depth of 19.3 kilometres (12 miles), was centred 119 kilometres east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city home to 165,000 residents. The United States Geological Survey later revised the magnitude upwards from initial reports of 8.0.
The tremor generated four-metre (13-foot) tsunami waves that struck parts of Kamchatka. Regional officials and Russia’s Ministry for Emergency Situations confirmed the port and a fish processing plant in Severo-Kurilsk suffered partial flooding, with vessels torn from their moorings.
The Russian Academy of Sciences confirmed it as the most powerful quake in the region since 1952. Power was cut in the Sakhalin region due to grid damage.
Pacific-wide alert cascade
The earthquake triggered immediate tsunami warnings across the vast Pacific Ocean. Japan, still deeply scarred by the 2011 disaster, activated alarms along its entire eastern seaboard. Authorities issued evacuation orders for tens of thousands of coastal residents.
Workers were evacuated from the Fukushima nuclear plant as a precaution. Japanese officials later recorded three tsunami waves, the largest measuring 60cm (24 inches). Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi confirmed no injuries, damage, or nuclear plant irregularities.
Hawaii issued urgent evacuation directives, instructing coastal residents to reach high ground or the fourth floor or higher in buildings. The US Coast Guard ordered ships out of harbours.
Live footage from Hawaii around the predicted arrival time showed no major waves at Hanalei Bay on Kauai or unusual surf changes. Waikiki Beach in Honolulu appeared deserted, indicating compliance with evacuation orders.
The US Tsunami Warning System forecasted waves exceeding 3 metres for parts of Russia, northern Hawaii, and Ecuador, with 1-3 metre waves possible for Japan, Hawaii, Chile, and the Solomon Islands. Smaller waves were anticipated along much of the US West Coast.
The region lies on the volatile Pacific Ring of Fire, notorious for seismic and volcanic activity.
