Map of Pacific region and tsunami zone
The tsunami warning extends along the U.S. West Coast. (Photo courtesy of the National Weather Service)

A tsunami watch for the West Coast was elevated Tuesday evening to a tsunami advisory by the National Weather Service.

The notice followed a powerful earthquake measuring magnitude 8.8 off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.

If a tsunami with the potential to generate strong currents or waves dangerous to those in or very near the water is imminent, expected or occurring, an advisory is issued, according to the Tsunami Warning Center.

People living in coastal areas were advised by the weather service to move off the beach and out of harbors and marinas.

“This will NOT be a single wave. Do NOT try to go to the coast to take photos,” the National Weather Service’s San Francisco Bay Area office posted on X.

Coastal areas all along the West Coast initially had been placed on tsunami watch after the quake, at 4:25 p.m. PDT Tuesday, 80 miles southeast of the Kamchatka Peninsula.

The notice extended all the way south from Chignik Bay, Alaska to the U.S.-Mexico border, according to the National Tsunami Warning System.

The times of arrival along the coast vary based on distance from the point of origin. In Oceanside and La Jolla, authorities said, the possible start time is early Wednesday – at 1:15 a.m.

The time is roughly 1:05 a.m. for Los Angeles Harbor and 1:10 a.m. for Newport Beach.

Coastal areas in Washington state should be on the lookout from 11:35 p.m. Tuesday, with Oregon following at 11:40 p.m. The first notice for California is in Fort Bragg at 11:50 p.m.; San Francisco’s time is 12:40 a.m. Wednesday, with Santa Barbara at 12:50 a.m.

The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services stated that it is “monitoring any potential impacts to the state” from the quake and tsunami.

More serious tsunami warnings were issued for Hawaii and the Alaska coast in response to the quake.

In the United States, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said a tsunami had been generated by the quake that could cause damage along the coastlines of all the Hawaiian islands.

“Urgent action should be taken to protect lives and property,” the warning stated. The first waves were expected around 7 p.m. local time.

Japan’s meteorological agency issued a tsunami alert for Japan’s Pacific coast, saying waves up to 3 meter (yards) could arrive along the northern Japanese coasts less than half an hour after the alert.

Aftershocks measuring at magnitudes of 6.9 and 6.3 were recorded over the ensuing hour after the original quake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Tsunami watches are an advance notice to areas that could be impacted by a tsunami at a later time. The watch will remain in effect until further notice.

Watch areas may be upgraded to a warning or advisory status, or canceled, based on new information.

Russia’s Tass news agency reported from the biggest city near the epicenter, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, that many people ran out into the street without shoes or outerwear. Cabinets toppled inside homes, mirrors were broken, cars swayed in the street and balconies on buildings shook noticeably.

Tass also reported power outages and mobile phone service failures in the capital of the Kamchatka region.

Tass quoted a local Russian official as saying residents on Sakhalin Island were being evacuated and emergency services were working at full capacity.

Earlier in July, five powerful quakes — the largest with a magnitude of 7.4 — struck in the sea near Kamchatka. The largest quake was at a depth of 20 kilometers and was 89 miles east of the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, which has a population of 180,000.

City News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Updated 11 p.m. July 29, 2025