South American countries, US states order evacuations after tsunami alerts triggered by 8.8 Russia earthquake

By Serdar Dincel

ISTANBUL (AA) – Several Latin American countries and US states ordered evacuations on Wednesday after tsunami alerts were issued following a powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, according to media reports.

Colombia’s National Unit for Disaster Risk Management said on X: “Tsunami alert for Choco and Narino,” urging “preventive evacuation of beaches and low-tide areas off the coasts of Narino and Choco.”

Peru also declared a tsunami alert after the undersea quake, with its navy and National Tsunami Warning Center warning of possible waves along the country’s coast.

Mexico and several Central American nations were placed on alert as well. The region’s Integrated Tsunami Alert System issued a warning extending from Ensenada, on Mexico’s northwest coast, to Panama.

The US National Weather Service said an earlier tsunami warning for Hawaii had been downgraded to an advisory. The Oʻahu Emergency Management agency later confirmed that all evacuations in the state had been lifted and residents were allowed to return to affected areas.

Tsunami advisories remained in place for parts of the US West Coast, Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, and British Columbia in Canada, according to media reports.