A colossal 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Russia's Far East on Wednesday, unleashing a powerful tsunami across the northern Pacific. The quake, centered 119 kilometers from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the Kamchatka Peninsula, struck at 8:25 a.m. Japan time, prompting urgent tsunami warnings from Alaska to New Zealand.

In Japan, a 30-centimeter tsunami wave hit Nemuro on Hokkaido’s eastern coast, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. Russia’s Kuril Islands saw waves crash into Severo-Kurilsk, where residents fled to higher ground, as confirmed by Governor Valery Limarenko. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center warned of waves up to 3 meters in Russia and Ecuador, with 1-3 meter surges possible in Hawaii, Chile, Japan, and the Solomon Islands. Hawaii faced potential damage across all islands, with evacuation orders issued.

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky reported chaos as residents fled homes, with toppled furniture, shattered mirrors, and power outages. Sakhalin Island saw mass evacuations, with emergency services stretched thin, per Russia’s Tass agency. Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and parts of the U.S. West Coast, including California, Oregon, and Washington, were under tsunami alerts.

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New Zealand, 6,000 miles away, warned of dangerous currents and surges, urging people to avoid beaches and harbors. This quake rivals the 2011 9.0-magnitude disaster off Japan, which triggered the Fukushima meltdown. The region remains on edge after recent quakes near Kamchatka, including a 7.4-magnitude event in July.

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