Millions of Americans are bracing for a tsunami as five-foot waves hit Hawaii following a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of Russia.

Residents in Hawaii were forced to evacuate from coastal areas as the entire island chain braced for the impact to strike. Water was seen receding at around 7.40pm local time, or 1.40am EST.

The California and Oregon border is now also under a tsunami warning, while advisories remained in effect for the rest of the West Coast of the United States.

The first tsunami waves hit Hawaii at 8.20pm local time, 2.20am EST. Water levels were above 4 feet in Haleiwa on Oahu’s north shore, reaching 5 feet just minutes later and causing floods.

Oahu Emergency Management warned residents: ‘Tsunami waves are currently impacting Hawaii. Take action NOW!’

In California, the first waves hit the coast at Crescent City and Humboldt Bay around midnight local time, 4am EST.

President Donald Trump urged Americans to ‘STAY STRONG AND STAY SAFE.’

Locals were seen running to supermarkets to stock up on water and other essentials as Gov. Josh Green signed an emergency proclamation for the state.

‘We pray that we won’t lose any loved ones,’ the governor said in a news conference as he warned the public to not ‘go out until we give you the all clear.’

Photos posted online also showed bumper-to-bumper traffic on a Honolulu highway as residents scrambled to get to higher ground. On Oahu, the US Army and Navy opened Kolekole Pass and sections of Schofield Barracks on Oahu to help with the evacuation efforts there as at least one critical traffic accident was reported.

The National Guard is also prepared to help with any rescue efforts and Blackhawk helicopters have been deployed, but Green warned ‘it is not likely we will recover you’ if residents are swept up in the massive waves.

Beaches along the Southern California coast were closed as a safety precaution, with LAPD helicopters blaring warning sirens and ordering those on boats and at the shore to get to higher ground.

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Hawaii residents were urged to evacuate from coastal areas as the entire island chain braced for the impact to strike at 1 am EST or 7pm local time

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A tsunami advisory has been extended to cover the entire West Coast of the United States

Data from the US Geological Survey shows the quake reached a magnitude of 8.8 and struck about 84 miles east-southeast of Kamchatska, Russia at around 7.24pm EST – marking the sixth strongest earthquake ever.

It was also believed to be the strongest to strike on the entire planet in 14 years, when a 9.1 megaquake hit northeast Japan and left 19,747 people either dead or missing.

All flights in and out of Kahului Airport in Maui have been canceled with passengers forced to shelter in the terminal.

Governor Green gave an update in Hawaii at 3am EST saying there had ‘not been a wave of consequence, which is a great relief to us’.

‘We expect to be about two to three hours at least until we can call ‘all clear’. So far though, at the moment, so good,’ he said.

‘We don’t want anyone to let their guard down, we want to go another couple of hours. As the waves cycle smaller and smaller, that’s how we’ll know that we’re ending this concern.

‘Everything has been OK so far. We haven’t seen a big wave. But when that water receded in Haleiwa and we saw some boats laying on dry rock and sand, that gave us pause. That doesn’t happen for no reason.’

Oprah Winfrey opened her private road in Maui to help people evacuate, CNN reported.

Her spokesperson said: ‘As soon as we heard the tsunami warnings, we contacted local law enforcement and FEMA to ensure the road was opened.’

Several were injured in Russia and kindergarten in Petropavlovsk collapsed from the quake as tsunami waves could be seen reaching the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.

‘Unfortunately, there are some people injured during the seismic event. Some were hurt while running outside, and one patient jumped out of a window. A woman was also injured inside the new airport terminal,’ Oleg Melnikov, regional health minister told Russia´s TASS state news agency.

‘All patients are currently in satisfactory condition, and no serious injuries have been reported so far.’

The Kamchatka branch of the Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences also said it was a very powerful earthquake.

‘However, due to certain characteristics of the epicenter, the shaking intensity was not as high … as one might expect from such a magnitude,’ it said in a video on Telegram.

‘Aftershocks are currently ongoing … Their intensity will remain fairly high. However, stronger tremors are not expected in the near future. The situation is under control.’

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Rescuers in Russia are pictured inspecting a kindergarten damaged by a massive earthquake on Tuesday

But a tsunami threat soon covered Japan, where workers at the Fukushima nuclear plant were forced to evacuate.

More than 1.9 million people in the country were under evacuation orders late Tuesday night, after the Nemuro Hanasaki port reported a one-foot wave.

Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency said so far no injuries or damages have been reported.

In Hawaii, the Department of Emergency Management for Oahu urged residents on the coast to evacuate the area or at least move to higher ground ahead.

Commercial flights at Hilo International Airport were also suspended ahead of the tsunami and beaches were closed in Washington state.

‘Right now, we’re traumatized,’ Dominga Advincula, of Honolulu told the Los Angeles Times. 

‘Every hour, they make the sound of sirens for everybody to leave the ocean and it makes us traumatized again for what happened in 2023’ when wildfires spread throughout the state.

Officials in Guam also urged residents to get off the beaches and harbors, while officials in Ecuador issued its own evacuation orders.

President Donald Trump urged Americans to ‘STAY STRONG AND STAY SAFE’

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Locals in Hawaii stocked up on water and other essentials in preparation for the pending tsunami

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Traffic builds on the Interstate H1 in both eastward and westward bound lanes after authorities warned residents of the possibility of destructive tsunami waves,

The tsunami ‘could be destructive’ to coastal areas, authorities at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center warned.

The warning added that ‘waves reaching more than three meters above the tide level [or about 10 feet] are possible along some coasts of Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.’

The National Weather Service also warned residents they ‘are in danger.’

‘Get away from coastal waters. Move to high ground or inland now. Keep away from the coast until local officials say it is safe to return,’ the department said in an alert.

Meteorologist Matthew Cappucci also urged Americans to ‘prepare to evacuate vertically if warnings are issued.’

‘Move away from beaches, harbors, marinas, bays and inlets. If you’re in a boat and cannot reach shore, sail away from the coast into deeper waters where the tsunami’s energy will be dispersed. Head to a place with an ocean depth of at least 180 feet.’

Even tsunami waves that seem relatively small, like those that are just six inches in height, can be destructive.

Officials say it only takes six inches of the fast-moving water to knock over an adult, and two feet to carry away most vehicle.

‘Strong currents can injure and drown people in or near the water and damage and destroy boats and infrastructure in harbors,’ the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program warns.

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Passersby in Japan stopped to watch the news as the island nation remained under a tsunami threat Tuesday night

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Vehicles evacuate to a higher ground in Kushiro, Hokkaido, northern Japan Wednesday, July 30, 2025, after a powerful earthquake in Russia’s Far East prompted tsunami warnings in parts of Japan

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The quake reached a magnitude of 8.8 and struck about 84 miles east-southeast of Kamchatska at around 7.24pm EST

The earthquake on Tuesday came just over one week after several other tremors struck the area, including one that measured a 7.4 magnitude.

Tuesday’s earthquake is the largest this year, and is the first magnitude 8.0 or higher since 2021.

An 8.8 magnitude earthquake previously hit Ecuador in 1906, killing 1,500 people with impacts reaching as far north as San Francisco. More recently, an 8.8-magnitude quake stuck Chile in 2010, killing 523 people and destroying more than 370,000 homes.

An 8.7-magnitude earthquake that struck near the Rat Islands of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands in 1965 also generated a tsunami that was reportedly 35 feet high.

Kamchatka and Russia’s Far East sit on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geologically active region that is prone to major earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.