Tsunami threat for Japan, Hawaii downgraded after evacuation orders sparked panic
In Hawaii, coastal residents were told to get to high ground or the fourth floor or above of buildings, and the US Coast Guard ordered ships out of harbours as the tsunami approached.
Waves of up to 1.7 metres hit the Hawaiian islands shortly after 4.30pm AEST, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said. Earlier, Hawaii Governor Josh Green said no major effects had been felt, but all flights in and out of Maui, the second-largest island, were cancelled.
Much of Japan's eastern coastline – devastated by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011 – was also ordered to prepare, with almost 2 million people under an evacuation order as of Wednesday afternoon. The Japanese government issued an emergency warning, saying it expected a tsunami as high as three metres to arrive across widespread Pacific coastal areas.
Telling Hawaiians to be ready, Green described the incoming tsunami as a 'forceful wall of water' and warned that waves could drown people, damage houses and the electricity grid, move cars, and dislodge trees.
'Take Action! Destructive tsunami waves expected,' the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said on X.
Hawaiian authorities downgraded the tsunami threat to 'advisory' level on Wednesday evening, confirming a major tsunami was no longer expected to strike the US island state.
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A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula triggered four-metre tsunami waves and sparked evacuation orders across the Pacific on Wednesday. In Hawaii, coastal residents were told to get to high ground or the fourth floor or above of buildings, and the US Coast Guard ordered ships out of harbours as the tsunami approached. Waves of up to 1.7 metres hit the Hawaiian islands shortly after 4.30pm AEST, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said. Earlier, Hawaii Governor Josh Green said no major effects had been felt, but all flights in and out of Maui, the second-largest island, were cancelled. Much of Japan's eastern coastline – devastated by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011 – was also ordered to prepare, with almost 2 million people under an evacuation order as of Wednesday afternoon. The Japanese government issued an emergency warning, saying it expected a tsunami as high as three metres to arrive across widespread Pacific coastal areas. Telling Hawaiians to be ready, Green described the incoming tsunami as a 'forceful wall of water' and warned that waves could drown people, damage houses and the electricity grid, move cars, and dislodge trees. 'Take Action! Destructive tsunami waves expected,' the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said on X. Hawaiian authorities downgraded the tsunami threat to 'advisory' level on Wednesday evening, confirming a major tsunami was no longer expected to strike the US island state.
