Japan upgrades tsunami warnings as big earthquake hits Russia's Far East
"Today's earthquake was serious and the strongest in decades of tremors," Kamchatka Gov. Vladimir Solodov said in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app. He added that according to preliminary information there were no injuries, but a kindergarten was damaged.
A tsunami with a height of 3 meters to 4 meters was recorded in parts of Kamchatka, Sergei Lebedev, regional minister for emergency situations, said, urging people to move away from shorelines.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was shallow at a depth of 19.3 kilometers, and was centered about 125 km east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city of 165,000 along the coast of Avacha Bay. It revised the magnitude up from 8.0 earlier.
Japan's weather agency upgraded its warning, saying it expected tsunami waves of up to 3 meters to reach coastal areas starting around 10 a.m. Japan time. Broadcaster NHK said evacuation orders had been issued by the government for some areas.
The U.S. Tsunami Warning System also issued an alert for "hazardous tsunami waves" within the next three hours along some coasts of Russia, Japan and Hawaii. A tsunami watch was also in effect for the U.S. island territory of Guam and other islands of Micronesia.
An evacuation order for the small town of Severo-Kurilsk, south of the Kamchatka Peninsula, was declared due to the tsunami threat, Sakhalin Gov. Valery Limarenko said on Telegram.
Kamchatka and Russia's Far East sit on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geologically active region that is prone to major earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
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In Japan, tsunami warning resurfaces memories of Fukushima disaster
By Satoshi Sugiyama Residents across Japan's Pacific coast rushed to higher ground on Wednesday as tsunami warnings following a massive earthquake off Russia's Far East resurfaced painful memories and lessons from the devastating 2011 earthquake and nuclear disaster. Television banners flashed "TSUNAMI! EVACUATE!" and similar warnings as most broadcasters cut regular programming to issue warnings and focus on evacuation orders, as tsunami waves approached Japan's shores. "Do not be glued to the screen. Evacuate now!" a news presenter at public broadcaster NHK shouted. The warnings resurfaced memories of the March 11, 2011, earthquake, when more than 15,000 people died after a 9.0-magnitude tremor triggered a massive tsunami that tore through the Fukushima nuclear power plant and caused a radioactive disaster. Many residents were unable to reach higher ground in time as surging waters from waves that were dozens of meters high engulfed much of the country's northeastern coast. On Wednesday, residents recalled those events as evacuation warnings were issued. "When the earthquake struck before, everyone evacuated to higher ground so I thought about doing the same," a woman in Fukushima told NHK. Workers in low-lying areas of Tokyo Electric Power's Fukushima nuclear facility suspended their decommissioning after the evacuation warning was issued and fled to higher ground. A spokesperson said the evacuation did not pose a safety concern. More than 2 million people along the Pacific coast were also instructed to head to safer areas. Many recalled lessons learnt from the 2011 disaster - known to locals as "3.11" - and braved heatstroke risks in the intense summer to reach higher ground. In Japan's coastal Mie prefecture, a 58-year-old woman died when her car fell off a cliff while she was evacuating, broadcaster TV Asahi reported. An official at the Japan Meteorological Agency warned that tsunami waves could continue to hit for a day or more. "I was at the same post office 14 years ago," a male postal office worker in Iwate prefecture told NHK. "This time, all of us said 'let's evacuate quickly.'" © (Thomson Reuters 2025.
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Kamchatka resident describes earthquake
A resident of the Kamchatka region in Russia's Far East described Wednesday's earthquake in a phone interview with NHK. The woman in the regional hub city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky said she felt strong shaking to the right and left. She said it was as if the ground was dancing, and it felt like it went on for about a minute. The woman said it was scary, and that she had never before experienced such shaking. She added that aftershocks are continuing, so a number of people are afraid to return home. She said some of them plan to sleep in their cars. Russian newspaper Izvestia quoted authorities as saying tsunami waves reached 200 meters inland in the town of Severo-Kurilsk on Paramushir, one of the Kuril Islands. Images from the town show multiple buildings and cars along the coast inundated. Local authorities say furniture in homes has been damaged, but there is no serious destruction.
Asahi Shimbun
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Powerful quake in Russia's far east causes tsunami, Japan and Hawaii order evacuations
Tsunami alerts are issued in the red areas shown on the map. (From the website of the Japan Meteorological Agency) A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula triggered 4-meter (13-foot) tsunami waves and sparked evacuation orders in Hawaii and across the Pacific on Wednesday. The shallow earthquake damaged buildings and injured several people in the remote Russian region, while much of Japan's eastern seaboard - devastated by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011 - was ordered to evacuate. In Hawaii, coastal residents were told to get to high ground or the fourth floor or above of buildings, and the U.S. Coast Guard ordered ships out of harbors as the tsunami approached. "Take Action! Destructive tsunami waves expected," the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said on X. No major waves were seen along the western-most of the major Hawaiian islands just before sunset when the first tsunami was expected to hit, live footage showed. Tsunami waves earlier struck parts of Kamchatka, partially flooding the port and a fish processing plant in the town of Severo-Kurilsk and sweeping vessels from their moorings, regional officials and Russia's emergency ministry said. "Today's earthquake was serious and the strongest in decades of tremors," Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov said in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app. Russian scientists said it was the most powerful quake to hit the region since 1952. Russia's Ministry for Emergency Services said on Telegram that a kindergarten was damaged but most buildings withstood the quake. No serious injuries or fatalities have been reported. The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was shallow at a depth of 19.3 km (12 miles), and centered 119 km east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city of 165,000. It revised the magnitude up from 8.0 earlier, and reported a series of strong aftershocks up to a magnitude of 6.9. A resident in the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky said the shaking rumbled for several minutes. "I decided to leave the building," said Yaroslav, 25. "It felt like the walls could collapse any moment. The shaking lasted continuously for at least 3 minutes.' WARNINGS ACROSS THE PACIFIC Tsunami alarms sounded in coastal towns across Japan's Pacific coast and evacuation orders were issued for tens of thousands of people. Workers evacuated the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, where a meltdown following the 2011 tsunami caused a radioactive disaster, operator TEPCO said. Footage on public broadcaster NHK showed scores of people on the northern island of Hokkaido on the roof of a building, sheltering under tents from the beating sun, as fishing boats left harbors to avoid potential damage from the incoming waves. Automaker Nissan Motor suspended operations at certain domestic factories in Japan to ensure employee safety, Kyodo news agency reported. Three tsunami waves had been recorded in Japan, the largest of 60cm (24 inches), officials said. Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said there were no injuries or damage reported so far, and no irregularities at any nuclear plants. The U.S. Tsunami Warning System also warned of "hazardous tsunami waves" spreading across the Pacific. Waves reaching more than 3 meters were possible along some coasts of Russia, the northern Hawaiian islands and Ecuador, while waves of 1-3 meters were possible in countries including Japan, Hawaii, Chile and the Solomon Islands, it said. Smaller waves were possible along coastlines across much of the Pacific, including the U.S. West Coast. "Due to a massive earthquake that occurred in the Pacific Ocean, a Tsunami Warning is in effect for those living in Hawaii," U.S. President Donald Trump said in a social media post. "A Tsunami Watch is in effect for Alaska and the Pacific Coast of the United States." Live video footage broadcast by Hawaii News Now, KHLN-TV, showed no major changes in the surf at Hanalei Bay on the northern coast of Kauai island around the estimated arrival time of the first expected tsunami at 7:10 p.m. (0510 GMT). A separate live aerial shot of Waikiki Beach in Honolulu showed a normally bustling shoreline devoid of any people, an indication that tourists and residents there were heeding the evacuation warnings. 'RING OF FIRE' Several people in Kamchatka sought medical assistance following the quake, Oleg Melnikov, regional health minister, told Russia's TASS state news agency. "Unfortunately, there are some people injured during the seismic event. Some were hurt while running outside, and one patient jumped out of a window. A woman was also injured inside the new airport terminal,' Melnikov said. Power to the Sakhalin region had been cut off due to damage to the electricity grid, Russia's RIA news agency said, citing the regional governor. Kamchatka and Russia's Far East sit on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geologically active region that is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The Russian Academy of Sciences said it was the strongest quake to hit the region since 1952. "However, due to certain characteristics of the epicenter, the shaking intensity was not as high ... as one might expect from such a magnitude," said Danila Chebrov, director of the Kamchatka Branch of the Geophysical Service, on Telegram. 'Aftershocks are currently ongoing ... Their intensity will remain fairly high. However, stronger tremors are not expected in the near future. The situation is under control.'
