Monster Quake Unleashes Tsunamis Across Continents

A powerful earthquake off the eastern coast of Russia has unleashed tsunami waves across parts of Russia, Japan, and Hawaii, prompting warnings across several countries including the Philippines, Ecuador, and others throughout the Pacific and Latin America.

The 8.8-magnitude earthquake, among the most powerful recorded, struck near Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, setting off tsunami waves up to four meters (13 feet) high in the region.

Sergei Lebedev, emergency minister of the area, confirmed that Kamchatka’s eastern shores were impacted significantly.

In Severo-Kurilsk, a port town on the Kuril Islands, tsunami waves exceeded three meters (9.8 feet), with the strongest wave reaching five meters (16.4 feet), according to Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency.

Flooding inundated parts of the town, forcing the evacuation of around 2,000 residents.

Emergency officials declared a state of emergency in the North Kuril District, and Mayor Alexander Ovsyannikov confirmed all residents had been moved to designated safe zones ahead of the wave’s arrival.

Footage circulating on Russian social media depicted entire streets and buildings submerged, underlining the severity of the situation.

The U.S. Tsunami Warning Centers warned that waves between one to three meters (3.3 to 9.8 feet) could reach countries such as Ecuador, Chile, Peru, Japan, and Pacific island nations, as well as the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Nathan Bangs, a geophysics researcher at the University of Texas, noted that the earthquake occurred in a subduction zone.

This is an area known for generating large tsunamis, similar to the Sumatra quake in 2004 and Japan’s Tohoku disaster in 2011.

In response to the threat, the U.S. National Weather Service issued tsunami warnings for Hawaii, Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, and parts of coastal California.

Advisories were also posted for Washington and Oregon. A broader tsunami watch was activated for the entire U.S. West Coast.

Authorities in Honolulu urged residents to evacuate low-lying coastal zones, issuing alerts such as “Take Action! Destructive tsunami waves expected,” via social media.

As a precaution, flights were suspended at Hilo International Airport to support evacuation operations.

Scenes of heavy traffic clogging roads in Honolulu and other areas illustrated the urgency with which residents sought higher ground.

U.S. President Donald Trump also weighed in, calling on residents in threatened zones to remain alert and heed all safety instructions.

Japanese authorities warned that tsunami waves of up to three meters could strike certain coastal regions.

The Japan Meteorological Agency advised residents in vulnerable zones near rivers and coastlines to evacuate immediately.

It stressed that multiple waves can occur over time and that people should remain in safe zones until all warnings are lifted.

Videos posted from Japan showed individuals in coastal towns moving quickly toward higher ground. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba urged residents to take evacuation orders seriously.

In Hokkaido, the country’s northernmost island, the first tsunami waves, measuring around 30cm (1ft), were observed Wednesday morning.

Fortunately, Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency reported no injuries or major damage.

Reporting from Kuala Lumpur, Al Jazeera’s Rob McBride emphasized that Japan, due to its proximity to the quake’s epicenter, was likely to be among the hardest hit.

The most extensive tsunami alerts in the region were issued for northern Honshu and Hokkaido.

Elsewhere, warnings and advisories were also issued for Indonesia, Taiwan, and the Philippines.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) initially measured the earthquake at magnitude 8.0 but later revised it to 8.8.

The quake occurred approximately 136 kilometers (85 miles) east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.

Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov described the tremor as the strongest the region had seen in decades.

Additional seismic activity followed, with aftershocks measuring 6.9 and 6.3 near Vilyuchinsk and Petropavlovsk.

Tsunami expert Robert Weis from Virginia Tech warned that waves of this scale could cause significant destruction.

“It is correct to be concerned,” he told Al Jazeera. “A three-meter wave is capable of doing serious damage.”

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