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An 8.0 magnitude earthquake has led to tsunami advisories being issued off Russia’s remote eastern coast, as reported by the United States Geological Survey on Wednesday.
The earthquake hit about 85 miles (136 kilometres) from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia at a depth of 19 kilometres, according to the USGS.
A tsunami watch is in place for the Hawaiian Islands and a tsunami advisory for portions of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands.
Coastal regions in Japan are also under tsunami advisories, with the country’s Meteorological Agency indicating potential wave heights of up to 1 meter, per Japan’s public broadcaster NHK.
“Based on the preliminary earthquake parameters, widespread hazardous tsunami waves are possible,” the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said.
The earthquake’s epicentre lies off the coast of Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula, a remote part of the country that is sparsely populated.
Kamchatka is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of intense seismic and volcanic activity on both sides of the Pacific Ocean.
According to RIA News, Sakhalin Governor Valery Limarenko has stated that evacuations are underway on Sakhalin, a Russian island located southwest of the epicenter.
This is a breaking news story. More to come …
