Reactions to the tsunami

Countries on four continents warn of tsunami: “There is a high risk of deaths”

The powerful earthquake in the Pacific Ocean has so far caused at least ten countries to issue tsunami warnings. Among the countries are Russia, the USA, Canada, Japan, China, Mexico, Peru and Ecuador.

According to seismologist Björn Lund, it will be hours before we know how much damage will be.

– These waves are attenuated very little when they travel across the ocean, so you have to take this very seriously, he tells TT.

There is a “high risk” of deaths, Lund tells TV4Nyheterna. In Russian Kamchatka, the tsunami struck just fifteen minutes after the earthquake, which means that many people probably did not have time to seek shelter. But for Latin American countries, the conditions are good because the tsunami could be twelve hours away.

– The rest of the world is now hoping that the tsunami warnings will be heeded enough that we won't have to see any casualties.

The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8, which is believed to be the strongest since 2011.

1.9 million evacuated in Japan – waves could be three meters high

1.9 million people have been ordered to evacuate after tsunami warnings in Japan, writes the BBC.

In Hokkaido in northern Japan, people have sought shelter, including on rooftops.

Employees at the Fukushima nuclear power plant have also been evacuated, and traffic is congested on the road out of the city.

Waves of up to three meters are expected to hit Japan's coasts on Wednesday, after an earthquake in the Pacific Ocean that reached a magnitude of 8.8.

It is believed to be the most powerful earthquake in the world since 2011, when a tsunami hit Japan's coastal cities hard.

Reactions to the Russian quake
Those threatened are exhaling: "Best to go up to the mountains"

Residents in the first places to be hit by Wednesday's tsunami seem to be exhaling, even though the danger is not completely over, several media outlets report.

In Hawaii, an evacuation order has been withdrawn, and in Japan, warnings have been downgraded along large parts of the coast.

Hawaii News Now has visited the Tantalus viewpoint on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, where people have sought out a high-altitude spot.

A family with children says they were swimming when they heard about the evacuation order. Another man says he saw the tsunami warning on a friend's phone.

- I checked, and decided that it was probably best to go up to the mountains for a while.

From Hokkaido, Japan, 31-year-old Minori Yoshida says he was evacuated from the office he worked at to – appropriately enough – the disaster management building.

“There is still some concern, especially given that there has been talk that a second wave could be bigger, but for now I am not too nervous,” he says.