First tsunami waves hit Hawaii after powerful 8.8 earthquake in Russia but they’re relatively small

Hawaii remains under a tsunami warning after one of the world’s strongest earthquakes struck Russia’s Far East early Wednesday, an 8.8-magnitude temblor that caused tsunami waves in Japan and Alaska and prompted warnings for North and Central America and Pacific islands south toward New Zealand.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTSC) said the estimated arrival time of the first tsunami wave in Hawaii was 7:17 p.m. Tuesday local time (1:17 a.m. Wednesday EDT). CBS Honolulu affiliate KGMB-TV reported that the first tsunami waves were coming ashore in some places and were relatively small, though they were coming at a time of high tide.

The Oahu Department of Emergency Services said on X at 2:15 a.m. EDT, “Take Action NOW! Tsunami waves are currently impacting Hawaii.”  

The PTSC said the Hilo, Hawaii gauge recorded a tsunami height of 4.9 feet relative to normal sea levels and the Kahului Maui gauge recorded a tsunami height of four feet.

People were urged to move inland and shelters were opened in many parts of Hawaii.

Pacific Tsunami Warning Center director Chip McCreery said at 7:30 p.m. local time (2:30 a.m. EDT) that, “We’ve got a ways to go. It’s probably going to be several hours before we may even be able to lower the warning here in Hawaii to advisory level when waves go down, and probably not at least until tomorrow morning before we’re able to completely cancel the warning,” according to KGMB.   

The impact of the tsunami could last for hours or perhaps more than a day, said Dave Snider, tsunami warning coordinator with the National Tsunami Warning Center in Alaska

“A tsunami is not just one wave,” he said. “It’s a series of powerful waves over a long period of time. Tsunamis cross the ocean at hundreds of miles an hour — as fast as a jet airplane — in deep water. But when they get close to the shore, they slow down and start to pile up. And that’s where that inundation problem becomes a little bit more possible there.”

“In this case, because of the Earth basically sending out these huge ripples of water across the ocean, they’re going to be moving back and forth for quite a while,” which is why some communities may feel effects longer, he said.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said data from Midway Atoll, which is between Japan and Hawaii, measured waves from peak to trough of 6 feet. He said waves hitting Hawaii could be bigger or smaller and it was too early to tell how large they would be. A tsunami of that size would be akin to a 3 foot wave riding on top of surf, he told a news conference.

“This is a longitudinal wave with great force driving through the shoreline and into land,” he said.

Green said Black Hawk helicopters have been activated and high-water vehicles were ready to go in case authorities need to rescue people. “But please do not put yourself in harm’s way,” he said.

The Oregon Department of Emergency Management said on Facebook that small tsunami waves were expected along the coast starting around 11:40 p.m. local time, with wave heights between one and two feet. It urged people to stay away from beaches, harbors and marinas and to remain in a safe location away from the coast until the advisory is lifted.

“This is not a major tsunami, but dangerous currents and strong waves may pose a risk to those near the water,” the department said.

Much of the West Coast spanning Canada’s British Columbia province, Washington state and California was also under a tsunami advisory.

CBS News Los Angeles reported that California Gov. Gavin Newsom shared a statement on X saying the state’s Office of Emergency Services was coordinating with local officials in Northern California, from Cape Mendocino to the Oregon border. 

The station said Dr. Lucy Jones, a world-renowned seismologist, said experts with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimated that waves of about a foot were predicted for most of Southern California.

CBS News correspondent Kris Van Cleave said some flights heading to Hawaii were turning around and going back to California, though KGMB reported some airports in Hawaii were beginning to re-open. 

A tsunami of under a foot was forecast to hit parts of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The province’s emergency preparedness agency said waves were expected to reach remote Langara Island around 10:05 p.m. Tuesday and Tofino around 11:30 p.m. The agency said “multiple waves over time” were expected.

The quake at 8:25 a.m. Japan time had a preliminary magnitude of 8.0, Japan and U.S. seismologists said. The U.S. Geological Survey later updated its strength to 8.8 magnitude and the USGS said the quake occurred at a depth of 13 miles.

The quake was centered about 74 miles east-southeast from the Russian city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, which has a population of 180,000, on the Kamchatka Peninsula. Multiple aftershocks as strong as 6.9 magnitude followed.

The first tsunami wave hit the coastal area of Severo-Kurilsk, the main settlement on Russia’s Kuril Islands in the Pacific, according to the local governor Valery Limarenko. He said residents were safe and staying on high ground until the threat of repeat waves was gone.

About 2,700 people were evacuated to safe locations on the Kuril Islands. Buildings were damaged and cars swayed in the streets in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Russian news agencies quoting the regional Health Ministry saying several people sought medical help in Kamchatka after the temblor, but no serious injuries were reported.

The earthquake appeared to be the strongest anywhere in the world since the 9.0 magnitude earthquake off northeastern Japan in March 2011 that caused a massive tsunami that set off meltdowns at a nuclear power plant. Only a few stronger earthquakes have ever been measured around the world.

The tsunami alert disrupted transportation in Japan, with ferries, trains and airports in the affected area suspending or delaying some operations.

A tsunami of 2 feet was recorded at Hamanaka town in Hokkaido and Kuji port in Iwate, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. Several areas reported smaller waves including 8 inches in Tokyo Bay five hours after the quake.

In Japan’s northern coastal town of Matsushima, dozens of residents took refuge at an evacuation center, where water bottles were distributed and an air conditioner was running. One person told NHK she came to the facility without hesitation based on the lesson from the 2011 tsunami.

Japanese nuclear power plants reported no abnormalities. The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi plant damaged by the 2011 tsunami said about 4,000 workers are taking shelter on higher ground at the plant complex while monitoring remotely to ensure plant safety.

Philippine authorities advised people to stay away from the beach and coastal areas. “It may not be the largest of waves, but these can continue for hours and expose people swimming in the waters to danger,” Teresito Bacolcol of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology told The Associated Press.

New Zealand authorities warned of “strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges” along all coastlines of the South Pacific island nation. The emergency management agency said people should move out of the water, off beaches and away from harbors, marinas, rivers and estuaries.

The quake was the strongest to hit this area on the Kamchatka Peninsula since 1952, according to the local branch of the Geophysical Survey of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The 9.0 quake on Nov. 4, 1952, in Kamchatka caused damage but no reported deaths despite setting off 30-foot waves in Hawaii.

They said that while the situation “was under control” there was a risk of aftershocks, which could last for up to a month and warned against visiting certain coastal areas.

Earlier in July, five powerful quakes – the largest with a magnitude of 7.4 – struck in the sea near Kamchatka. The largest quake was at a depth of 12.4 miles and was 89 miles east of the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. 

There are four levels of tsunami alerts: warning, advisory, watch and information statement, according to the National Weather Service. A tsunami warning is the most severe alert, meaning residents should take action due to a tsunami that may cause widespread flooding. 

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