A powerful earthquake of magnitude 8.8 on the Richter Scale hit Russia’s far eastern coast on Wednesday morning, triggering a tsunami warning in the northern Pacific region, including parts of Russia, the United States and Japan. Waves as high as five feet reportedly hit the United States’ Alaska and Hawaii. Meanwhile, the next set of 10-foot-high waves is expected to hit these US states later in the day.
Authorities across the Pacific are on high alert following the earthquake that struck the coast of Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula. Dave Snider, tsunami warning coordinator with the National Tsunami Warning Center in Alaska, called the earthquake "absolutely notable" and "a significant earth event," as reported by The Associated Press.
"Tsunamis cross the ocean at hundreds of miles an hour -- as fast as a jet airplane -- in deep water," Snider said. "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," he added.
In Hawaii, emergency authorities sent alerts to people's cellphones, on TV and radio and sound a network of sirens. Meanwhile, in Alaska, some communities have sirens, and information is also available on weather radio or public radio broadcasts.
Tsunami Hits Russia And Japan:
Meanwhile, a tsunami has already hit coastal areas of Russia's Kuril Islands and Japan's large northern island of Hokkaido after the powerful earthquake.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said a tsunami as high as 40 centimeters (1.3 feet) had been detected in 16 locations as the waves moved south along the Pacific coast from Hokkaido to just northeast of Tokyo, reported The Associated Press. Officials urged citizens to remain alert as bigger waves are expected later in the day.
Damage and evacuations were reported in the Russian regions nearest the quake's epicentre on the Kamchatka Peninsula. Over nine lakh people have been under evacuation in Japan in the wake of tsunami warnings.
