Russia hit by 8.7 magnitude earthquake, tsunami warnings issued

A powerful earthquake struck Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. It measured 8.7 on the Richter scale. Soon after the quake, tsunami warnings were issued in several countries, including Japan, the United States, and Taiwan. The quake was felt early Wednesday morning local time.

According to Al Jazeera, waves up to 4 meters high were seen on Kamchatka’s coast due to the earthquake. Russian geological agencies said this was the strongest quake in the past few decades.

After the quake, the Honolulu Emergency Management Department in the US warned of “destructive tsunami waves” and told people in coastal areas to move to safer places. In Japan, waves up to 3 meters high are also expected in coastal regions.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) reported that the earthquake's epicenter was 136 kilometers east of the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Shortly after the main quake, two more quakes were recorded in the same region, one measuring 6.9 and the other 6.3 in magnitude.

Vladimir Solodov, governor of Russia’s Kamchatka region, said in a video message, “This is the strongest earthquake in the past few decades.”

Tsunami expert Robert Weiss told Al Jazeera, “The situation is serious. It’s natural to be concerned about such a strong earthquake.”

To deal with the earthquake and possible tsunami, Russia and other affected countries have issued emergency alerts and increased monitoring in coastal areas.