'Worst is over' as tsunami warnings are scaled back

ONE of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded has struck off Russia's sparsely populated Far East, sending tsunami waves into Japan, Hawaii and the US west coast.

- MARI YAMAGUCHI

Several people were injured, but none seriously, and no major damage has been reported so far.

Authorities warned that the risk from the 8.8 magnitude quake could last for hours, and millions of people potentially in the path of the waves were initially told to move away from the shore or seek high ground.

But the danger already appeared to be lessening in some places, with Hawaii and parts of Japan downgrading their warnings. Authorities on Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula, near the quake’s epicentre, cancelled their tsunami warning.

But Chile upgraded its warning to the highest level for most of its lengthy Pacific coast, and said it was evacuating hundreds of people.

Residents fled inland as ports flooded on Kamchatka, while frothy, white waves washed up on the shore in northern Japan. Cars jammed streets and motorways in Honolulu, with standstill traffic even in areas away from the sea.

While tsunami advisories remained in place along much of the US west coast, homeland security chief Kristi Noem said the worst was over.

“We were fully deployed and ready to respond if necessary, but grateful that we didn’t have to deal with the situation that this could have been,” she told reporters.