Tsunami waves hit Hawaii, California after Russia earthquake

• Magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's east coast sparks tsunami fears throughout Pacific
• Tsunami waves hit Japan's northern island of Hokkaido and Russia's Kurill Islands
• The waves have also made landfall in the US state of Hawaii, with California's coast also getting hit 
• Evacuations across the Pacific, with tsunami warnings also in place in Peru and neighboring Chile

Here's a look at the latest regarding the Kamchatka earthquake and tsunami waves in the Pacific on July 30, 2025

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Tsunami warnings also impact Colombia, Peru, Mexico

Tsunami warnings due to the earthquake off Russia's East are also in effect for several Latin American countries which border the Pacific Ocean.  

Colombia has issued an evacuation order for beaches and coastal areas on the Pacific. 

"Tsunami alert for Choco and Narino," Colombia's National Unit for Disaster Risk Management posted on X, referring to two regions on the Pacific coast. "Preventive evacuation of beaches and low-lying coastal areas is recommended." 

Peru and its neighbor Chile are also under tsunami alerts.

The president of Peru's Geophysical Institute, Hernando Tavera, told AFP news agency the tsunami "generated by this earthquake is expected to reach the Peruvian coast on Wednesday morning, with waves not expected to exceed three meters (9.8 feet) in height." 

Mexico, which has a long border with the Pacific, is also expected to be impacted. The Mexican Navy called for residents to stay away from beaches on the Pacific and they believe waves between 30 centimeters and 1 meter in height are possible.   

Another Latin American country, Ecuador, said its famous Galapagos Islands could be hit by tidal waves. 

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Tsunami waves hit California

Waves from the tsunami have hit the coast off northern California. 

"The tsunami has reached the California Coast, and is showing up in the Arena Cove, CA tide gauge and is making its way down the coast right now," the National Weather Service Los Angeles account posted on X. Arena Cove is located in northern California above San Francisco.  

California officials have warned residents to not go out to the coast to watch the tsunami (FILE: January 15, 2022) Image: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP

A tsunami advisory is in effect across the coastal areas of California.  

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Injuries reported in Russia's Kamtchatka due to earthquake

The Kamchatka quake is the strong to hit the region in decades, Russian authorities saidImage: S. Lakamov/KBGSRAS/Anadolu/picture alliance

The 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula has led to injuries. 

Kamchatka Health Minister Oleg Melnikov said there were several injuries due to the quake, but did not provide an exact number. 

Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov posted video on Telegram of a kindergarten that had been damaged by the earthquake. 

Russian authorities have warned of aftershocks in Kamachatka after the quake. 

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How are tsunamis formed?

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First tsunami waves make landfall in Hawaii

Tsunami waves have hit the US state of Hawaii after a warning was issued. An anchor for local Hawaii broadcaster KHON2 posted footage of the waves. 

Ports in Hawaii have closed, with residents asked to move to the high ground. Hawaiians are being urged to move to the fourth floor or higher of buildings as the waves come. 

"People should not, and I will say it one more time, should not, as we have seen in the past, stay around the shoreline or risk their lives just to see what a tsunami looks like," Hawaii Governor Josh Green said. "It is not a regular wave. It will actually kill if you get hit by a tsunami."

Green later said that there had been no signs of significant waves in Hawaii after beginning tsunami preparations. 

Kahului Airport, which is located on HawaiI's largest island of Maui, has cancelled flights due to the tsunami risk.  

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Tsunami waves first hit Russia's Kuril Islands, Japan's Hokkaido

The first tsunami waves from the earthquake off Russia's Kamchatka peninsula made landfall in the Russian-administered Kuril Islands and Japan's large northern island of Hokkaido.   

Russian local governor Valery Limarenko said the first tsunami wave had struck the coast of Severo-Kurilsk, the main settlement on the Pacific archipelago.

The Russian-administered Kuril islands lie just north of Japan and below the Kamchatska Peninsula Image: Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences/AP Photo/picture alliance

Russian authorities said the town's population of around 2,000 people was evacuated and residents have been urged to remain on high ground until the threat of repeat waves has passed.

Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA), meanwhile, 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.

Authorities have cautioned that bigger waves could come later, with the JMA saying that a major tsunami could be expected for more than a day after Wednesday's earthquake. 

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Where are the tsunami warnings in the Pacific?

Tsunami warnings have been put out throughout the Pacific due to the earthquake, from Japan in the east to the western US and countries in South America, such as Colombia and Peru. 

This US map shows tsunami warnings in red, advisories in orange, and watches in yellowImage: NOAA/AFP

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Welcome to our coverage

A magnitude 8.8. earthquake off the coast of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula has triggered tsunami warnings across the Pacific. 

This blog will bring you the latest news about the earthquake and tsunami, along with DW-on-the-ground reporting from affected regions and multimedia content. We will also delve deeper into the science of how tsunamis are developed.