TOKYO (AP) — A tsunami hit coastal areas of Russia’s Kuril Islands and Japan after a powerful, 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Russia early Wednesday. Warnings are also in place for Alaska, Hawaii and other coasts south toward New Zealand.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said a tsunami as high as 60 centimeters (2 feet) had been detected as the waves moved south along the Pacific coast from Hokkaido to Tokyo Bay. Officials urged caution, saying that bigger waves could come later.
Damage and evacuations were reported in the Russian regions nearest the quake’s epicenter on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
A tsunami height of 3-4 meters (10 to 13 feet) was recorded in Kamchatka, 60 centimeters (2 feet) on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido, and up to 1.4 feet (under 30 centimeters) above tide levels were observed in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands.
Russian regions report limited damage
The quake at 8:25 a.m. Japan time had a preliminary magnitude of 8.0, Japanese and U.S. seismologists said. The U.S. Geological Survey later updated its strength to 8.8 magnitude and a depth of 20.7 kilometers (13 miles).
The Russian authorities didn’t report any significant damage on Kamchatka. The main city, Petropavlovsk Kamchatsky, is located on the coast of Avacha Bay that protected it from waves.
Both Kachatka and particularly the Kurils are sparsely populated.
The quake was centered about 119 kilometers (74 miles) east-southeast from the Russian city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, which has a population of 180,000, on the Kamchatka Peninsula. Multiple aftershocks as strong as 6.9 magnitude followed.
Severokurilsk Mayor Alexander Ovsyannikov said the port in the city was flooded by tsunami waves, washing fishing boats into the sea. He said that no major damage was recorded.
Power supplies have been shut and the authorities were checking the power network after the flooding.
Russia declares state of emergency on the Kuril islands
The Russian authorities declared a state of emergency on the Kuril islands after the tsunami.
They earlier reported that several tsunami waves flooded the fishing port of Severokurilsk, the main city on the islands, and cut power supplies to the area. The Russian authorities said that tsunami waves topping 3 meters (9.8 feet) hit Severokurilsk.
Japan asserts territorial rights to the four Pacific islands it calls the Northern Territories. They were taken by the Soviet Union in the final days of World War II, and the dispute has kept the countries from signing a peace treaty.
8.8-magnitude quake was among the strongest this century
Wednesday’s 8.8-magnitude quake was among the four strongest earthquakes this century, and among the eight strongest since 1900, according to the USGS.
The earthquake occurred along the Pacific Ring of Fire, the ring of seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean where most of the world’s earthquakes occur.
The 2011 Japan quake and the 2004 earthquake off Indonesia were 9.1 magnitude, and a 2010 earthquake in Chile also was recorded at 8.8 magnitude.
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