A powerful earthquake off Russia’s remote Kamchatka Peninsula has triggered a cascade of tsunami warnings across the Pacific, prompting evacuations and sparking alarm from Japan to Hawaii.
The quake, initially measured at magnitude 8.7 and later upgraded to 8.8 by the US Geological Survey, struck just before dawn on Wednesday, shaking buildings and prompting people in Russia’s far east to flee outdoors barefoot as tremors rocked homes and toppled furniture.
“This was the strongest in decades of tremors,” Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov said in a video posted on Telegram.
Russia’s emergencies ministry confirmed that a tsunami had inundated the port town of Severo-Kurilsk, home to around 2,000 people. “The tsunami flooded parts of the port town... The population has been evacuated,” the ministry said in a statement. Footage posted online showed buildings partially submerged and residents scrambling to safety.
In Japan, the Meteorological Agency issued tsunami warnings for areas stretching from Hokkaido to Wakayama. Early waves reaching about 30 centimetres were recorded in Hokkaido, but authorities warned that the danger was not over. “There will be a second or third tsunami,” said NHK correspondent James Oaten. “The first wave was only 30cm. But Japanese authorities are warning people that the waves can get higher.”
The agency forecast potential waves of up to three metres along the Pacific coast, urging residents to seek higher ground. “The [Japanese] prime minister has urged anyone in coastal areas to seek higher ground,” Oaten said. “A lot of factory workers are now going onto the rooftops.”
The event marks the first time since the 2010 Chile earthquake that Japan has issued a tsunami warning in response to an overseas tremor. A spokesperson from the Meteorological Agency said the warnings could remain in place for an extended period.
Evacuation orders were also issued in the Sakhalin region of Russia. Russia’s Regional Minister for Emergency Situations, Sergei Lebedev, reported waves between three and four metres and cautioned, “All need to move away from water peaks.”
Elsewhere in the Pacific, Hawaii has been placed under a tsunami warning, with the US National Weather Service projecting possible wave heights of one to three metres. The West Coast of the United States — including California, Oregon and Washington — was placed on tsunami watch.
US President Donald Trump posted about the situation, writing, “STAY STRONG AND STAY SAFE,” and directed the public to tsunami.gov for updates.
In the Pacific Islands, authorities in Guam, the Northern Marianas, Palau, and American Samoa issued tsunami advisories, warning of dangerous currents and surges. Officials in Guam advised residents to evacuate inland and avoid coastal areas. “Officials have always kept residents updated on what to do and where to go if there is a tsunami,” said Guam-based journalist Naina Rao.
New Zealand’s National Emergency Management Agency also issued an alert, warning of “strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges,” though no evacuation orders were made.
Back in Russia, Tass news agency reported scenes of chaos in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the region’s largest city. Power outages were widespread, phone services disrupted, and many residents fled homes in their nightclothes. “Cabinets toppled inside homes, mirrors were broken, cars swayed in the street and balconies on buildings shook noticeably,” Tass reported.
The Kamchatka branch of the Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences warned of significant aftershocks in the coming weeks. “Given the scale of this event, we should expect strong aftershocks, possibly with magnitudes up to 7.5,” the agency said.
Japan, one of the world’s most seismically active countries, sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”. This region has already experienced several strong tremors this month, including a magnitude 7.4 quake near Kamchatka earlier in July.
The 1952 earthquake in Kamchatka, measuring magnitude 9.0, remains the region’s most powerful quake on record, unleashing 30-foot waves in Hawaii. While Wednesday’s event did not match that magnitude, experts say it is the strongest to hit the peninsula in more than 70 years.
Despite widespread damage in parts of eastern Russia, no fatalities have been confirmed at this stage. Authorities continue to assess the full impact of the event as alerts remain in place across the Pacific.
