Tsunami Reaches Hawaii About Six Hours After Earthquake
Warning Downgraded to Advisory Three Hours Later
Tsunami Also Arrives on the U.S. West Coast
Hawaii Also Suffered Tsunami Damage During the Great East Japan Earthquake
A tsunami triggered by a magnitude 8.8 earthquake near the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia's Far East has reached the United States, thousands of kilometers away.
According to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a tsunami generated by the earthquake struck the Hawaii region at approximately 7:17 p.m. local time on July 30, 2025. This occurred about six hours after the major earthquake struck the Kamchatka Peninsula, which is located more than 4,000 kilometers in a straight line from Hawaii.
Tsunami warnings were issued not only for Hawaii but also for the U.S. West Coast and Pacific coastal areas of Central and South America, prompting many residents to evacuate. Authorities in Hawaii had previously ordered all residents to move to high ground or to buildings at least four stories tall. All flights to and from Maui Island were canceled.
About three hours after the tsunami reached Hawaii, the warning was downgraded to an advisory. So far, no significant damage has been reported in Hawaii. Hawaii Governor Josh Green stated, "So far, there have been no unusual developments. No large waves have been observed yet."
The tsunami has also reached the U.S. West Coast after passing Hawaii. According to CNN, at dawn on July 30, 2025 local time, tsunami waves about 50 centimeters high were observed along the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California.
A tsunami warning remains in effect for a 100-mile (160-kilometer) stretch of California's northern coast. Evacuation orders have also been issued in Colombia, and Central and South American countries along the Pacific coast are on high alert.
Lucy Jones, a researcher at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) Seismological Laboratory, explained to Bloomberg, "An earthquake of this magnitude can push a massive volume of water across the Pacific to the opposite shore." She added that the speed of the tsunami can reach nearly 1,000 kilometers per hour underwater.
When a magnitude 9.1 earthquake struck Japan's Kanto region on March 11, 2011, Hawaii also suffered damage from a tsunami. At that time, tsunami waves between 0.9 and 3.0 meters high swept across the entire Hawaiian Islands, and waves as high as 3.6 meters were observed on Kauai and the Big Island. CNN reported that the tsunami caused $7.5 million in damages in Hawaii.
Earlier, at 11:24 a.m. on July 30, 2025 (8:24 a.m. Korean time), a magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred in the sea about 60 kilometers east of the coast of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula.
Forecasts indicated that tsunami waves over 3 meters could be observed in areas near the epicenter, including Russia, some northern Hawaiian islands, and Ecuador. Tsunami waves between 1 and 3 meters were expected for Japan, the remaining Hawaiian islands, Chile, and the Solomon Islands, while lower tsunami waves were predicted for the U.S. West Coast.
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