Massive 8.7 magnitude earthquake off coast of Russia sparks Tsunami fears for US territories
The earthquake struck off Russia's Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday, generating a tsunami of up to 4 metres, officials have said.
The US Geological Survey, which revised the magnitude up from 8.0 earlier stated, said the earthquake was shallow at a depth of 19.3 km and was centred about 125 km away from the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov has said there have been no injuries, but a kindergarten was damaged, according to preliminary information.
"Today's earthquake was serious and the strongest in decades of tremors," the governor said in a in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app.
The US Tsunami Warning System also issued a warning of "hazardous tsunami waves" within the next few hours along some coasts of Russia, Japan and Hawaii.
A tsunami watch is also in effect for the US island territory of Guam and other islands of Micronesia.
The Japan Weather Agency's warning said it expected tsunami waves of up to 3 metres to reach large coastal areas starting around 11am AEST.
An evacuation order has been declared for the small town of Severo-Kurilsk, south of the peninsula, Sakhalin Governor Valery Limarenko said on Telegram.
With Reuters
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SBS Australia
4 days ago
- SBS Australia
Tsunami alerts lifted after massive Russia quake prompts evacuations across the Pacific
A very powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka coast on Wednesday triggered tsunami warnings as far away as French Polynesia and Chile, and was followed by an eruption of the most active volcano on the peninsula. The shallow quake damaged buildings and injured several people in the remote Russian region while people on much of Japan's eastern seaboard — devastated by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011 — was ordered to leave, as were residents in parts of Hawaii. Authorities in Japan, Hawaii and Russia later downgraded their tsunami warnings. In French Polynesia. authorities urged residents to remain cautious but lifted a tsunami alert in the Marquesas Islands, saying people could return to their homes. Tsunami waves had begun hitting early on Wednesday but were smaller than initially feared, authorities said. The French High Commission in French Polynesia said wave heights had reached 1.5m, down from a previous forecast of up to four metres. The Marquesas Islands, among the most remote in the world, have a population of approximately 9500, according to a 2022 census. Elsewhere in French Polynesia, wave heights were expected to remain below 30cm, not requiring people to flee or shelter. Most powerful quake since 1952 Russian scientists said the quake in Kamchatka was the most powerful to hit the region since 1952. The US Geological Survey said it was shallow, at a depth of 19.3km, and centred 119km east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city of 165,000. "It felt like the walls could collapse any moment. The shaking lasted continuously for at least three minutes," said Yaroslav, 25, in the city. Source: SBS News Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there had been no casualties in Russia, crediting solid building construction and the smooth operation of alert systems. In Severo-Kurilsk in the northern Kuril Islands, tsunami waves exceeded three metres, with the largest up to five metres, Russia's RIA news agency reported. A quake of magnitude 6.07 later struck the Kuril Islands that lie between Kamchatka and northern Japan, the German Research Centre for Geosciences said. Tsunami waves partially flooded the port and a fish processing plant in the town, sweeping vessels from moorings, regional officials and Russia's emergency ministry said Verified drone footage showed the town's entire shoreline submerged, with taller buildings and some storage facilities surrounded by water. A tsunami warning was displayed on a television in Yokohama, near Tokyo, on Wednesday. Source: AAP / AP/Eugene Hoshiko Volcano eruption The Klyuchevskoy volcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula began erupting later, a geological monitoring service said. Located about 450km north of the regional capital, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Klyuchevskoy is one of the highest volcanoes in the world. "A descent of burning hot lava is observed on the western slope. Powerful glow above the volcano, explosions," the Russian Academy of Sciences' United Geophysical Service said on Telegram. Hawaii recorded waves of up to 1.7 metres while in Japan the largest recorded came to 1.3 metres, officials said. Waves of nearly half a metre were observed in the US state of California, with smaller ones reaching Canada's province of British Columbia. But a tsunami advisory was cancelled for coastal British Columbia as well as coastal areas of south Alaska. The quake occurred on what is known as a "megathrust fault" where the denser Pacific Plate is sliding underneath the lighter North American Plate, according to scientists. The Pacific Plate has been on the move, making the Kamchatka Peninsula off Russia's far east coast especially vulnerable, and bigger aftershocks could not be ruled out, they said.
West Australian
4 days ago
- West Australian
Tsunami risk eases after Kamchatka Russian earthquake, volcano erupts on Russia's far east coast
A very powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka coast has triggered tsunami warnings as far away as French Polynesia and Chile, and was followed by an eruption of the most active volcano on the peninsula. The shallow quake damaged buildings and injured several people in the remote Russian region while people on much of Japan's eastern seaboard - devastated by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011 - was ordered to leave, as were residents in parts of Hawaii. Authorities in Japan, Hawaii and Russia later downgraded their tsunami warnings. Authorities in French Polynesia urged residents to remain cautious but lifted a tsunami alert in the Marquesas Islands, saying people could return to their homes. Tsunami waves had begun hitting early on Wednesday but were smaller than initially feared, authorities said. The French High Commission in French Polynesia said wave heights had reached 1.50 metres, down from a previous forecast of up to four metres. Additional smaller waves were expected in the coming hours, officials said. The Marquesas Islands, among the most remote in the world, have a population of approximately 9500, according to a 2022 census. Elsewhere in French Polynesia, wave heights were expected to remain below 30 centimetres, not requiring people to flee or shelter. However, residents are urged to stay away from shorelines and river mouths. Some initial wave surges were reported on Nuku Hiva, the largest of the Marquesas, about 1400km northeast of Tahiti, the French high commission said. Russian scientists said the quake in Kamchatka was the most powerful to hit the region since 1952. The US Geological Survey said it was shallow, at a depth of 19.3km, and centred 119km east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city of 165,000. 'It felt like the walls could collapse any moment. The shaking lasted continuously for at least three minutes,' said Yaroslav, 25, in the city. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there had been no casualties in Russia, crediting solid building construction and the smooth operation of alert systems. In Severo-Kurilsk in the northern Kuril Islands, tsunami waves exceeded three metres, with the largest up to five metres, Russia's RIA news agency reported. A quake of magnitude 6.07 later struck the Kuril Islands that lie between Kamchatka and northern Japan, the German Research Centre for Geosciences said. Tsunami waves partially flooded the port and a fish processing plant in the town, sweeping vessels from moorings, regional officials and Russia's emergency ministry said. Verified drone footage showed the town's entire shoreline submerged, with taller buildings and some storage facilities surrounded by water. The Klyuchevskoy volcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula began erupting later, a geological monitoring service said. Located about 450km north of the regional capital, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Klyuchevskoy is one of the highest volcanoes in the world. 'A descent of burning hot lava is observed on the western slope. Powerful glow above the volcano, explosions,' the Russian Academy of Sciences' United Geophysical Service said on Telegram. Hawaii recorded waves of up to 1.7 metres while in Japan the largest recorded came to 1.3 metres, officials said. Flights out of Honolulu airport resumed in the evening, the transportation department said. Waves of nearly half a metre were observed in the US state of California, with smaller ones reaching Canada's province of British Columbia. But a tsunami advisory was cancelled for coastal British Columbia as well as coastal areas of south Alaska. 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 quake occurred on what is known as a 'megathrust fault' where the denser Pacific Plate is sliding underneath the lighter North American Plate, according to scientists. The Pacific Plate has been on the move, making the Kamchatka Peninsula off Russia's far east coast especially vulnerable, and bigger aftershocks could not be ruled out, they said. Video footage from the region's health ministry showed a team of medics in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky performing surgery as the quake shook their operating theatre. The medics used their hands to try to steady both the patient and their equipment, CCTV footage released by the Kamchatka region's health ministry showed. with DPA
The Age
4 days ago
- The Age
Evacuations ordered in South America as worst tsunami risk passes for US, Japan
'We were fully deployed and ready to respond if necessary but grateful that we didn't have to deal with the situation that this could have been,' she told reporters in Chile, where she is meeting officials. Unusually strong currents and unpredictable surges were expected in places as far away as New Zealand, and the National Weather Service warned the San Francisco Bay Area could see 'some seriously dangerous currents along beaches and harbours.' Among strongest quakes ever recorded The earthquake appeared to be the strongest recorded since the 9.0 magnitude earthquake off northeastern Japan in March 2011 that caused a massive tsunami and set off meltdowns at a nuclear power plant. The International Atomic Energy Agency said initial reports showed Japan's nuclear plants were not affected. Only a few stronger earthquakes have ever been measured around the world. Wednesday's occurred along the Pacific 'Ring of Fire,' a series of seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean where most of the world's earthquakes take place. The quake struck at 11:24am in Kamchatka with a magnitude of 8.8 and a depth of about 21 kilometres, according to the US Geological Survey. It was centred offshore, about 120 kilometres from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Kamchatka's regional capital. Aftershocks as strong as 6.9 magnitude followed Russia's Oceanology Institute said tsunami waves might have been as high as 10 to 15 meters in some sections of the Kamchatka coast – but the highest were less than 6 meters near the populated areas of the peninsula and the nearby Kuril Islands. Meanwhile, lava began to flow Wednesday from Kamchatka's Klyuchevskaya Sopka volcano, the largest active one in the Northern Hemisphere. Observers also heard explosions, the Russian Academy of Sciences' geophysical service said. Evacuations ordered in South America Chile, a place highly vulnerable to earthquakes and subsequent tsunamis, raised its warning early on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) to the highest level for most of its lengthy Pacific coast and said it was evacuating hundreds of people. 'Remember that the first wave is usually not the strongest,' Chilean President Gabriel Boric warned on social media. 'Let's act calmly and follow official instructions.' Colombian officials ordered the complete closure and evacuation of beaches and low-tide areas while maritime traffic was being restricted. Education officials in Ecuador cancelled classes at schools in the Galapagos Islands as well communities along the coast. Russian regions report limited damage In Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Kamchatka's regional capital, the quake damaged a local kindergarten, which was not in operation at the time because it was being renovated. Oleg Melnikov, head of the regional health department, said several people hurt themselves while rushing to leave buildings and a hospital patient was injured while jumping out of a window. Melnikov said all injured people were stable. A video released by a Russian media outlet showed a team of doctors at a cancer clinic on Kamchatka holding a patient and clutching medical equipment as the quake rocked an operating room, before continuing with surgery after the shaking stopped. Authorities introduced a state of emergency on the sparsely populated nearby Kurils after the tsunami. They earlier reported that several waves flooded the fishing port of Severo-Kurilsk, the main city on the islands, and cut power supplies to the area. The port's mayor said no major damage was recorded. Authorities on Kamchatka peninsula and in the Kurils canceled their tsunami warnings but said some risk of waves remains. Hawaii downgrades to tsunami advisory Authorities in Hawaii downgraded the state to a tsunami advisory early Wednesday, and evacuation orders on the Big Island and Oahu, the most populated island, were lifted. An advisory means there is the potential for strong currents and dangerous waves, as well as flooding on beaches or in harbours. 'As you return home, still stay off the beach and stay out of the water,' said James Barros, administrator of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency. In northern California, tsunami activity continued to build Wednesday morning with maximum confirmed heights along the coast of 1.1 meters in Crescent City. The Oregon Department of Emergency Management said small tsunami waves were expected. 'This is not a major tsunami, but dangerous currents and strong waves may pose a risk to those near the water,' the department said. A tsunami of less than 30 centimetres was forecast to hit parts of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, and waves of up to 42 centimetres above tide levels were observed in Alaska's Aleutian Islands. Dozens find refuge on hilltops, rooftops in Japan A tsunami of 60cm was recorded in Hamanaka town in Hokkaido and Kuji port in Iwate, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. Several areas reported smaller waves, and at least one person was injured. In Iwaki city in Fukushima, which was the epicentre of the 2011 tsunami and quake, dozens of residents gathered at a hilltop park after a community siren sounded and breakwater gates were closed. Loading Workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, severely damaged in 2011, took shelter on higher ground while remotely monitoring operations, the operator said. By late Wednesday, Japan had downgraded its tsunami alert but left an advisory in place along the Pacific coast. Authorities in the Philippines, Mexico and New Zealand warned residents to watch for waves and strong currents. People were also urged to stay away from coastlines until any wave surges passed in Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Federated States of Micronesia and Solomon Islands.
