TOKYO — The 8.8-magnitude earthquake that occurred in northeast Russia on Wednesday morning caused tsunami warnings to be issued in the US states of Alaska and Hawaii and in Japan.

Damage was reported and evacuations were issued in Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, the quake’s epicenter. A tsunami of up to 4 meters was reported in parts of the region, the regional minister for emergency situation Sergei Lebedev said.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centers warned that waves of 1 to 3 meters above the tidal level may occur in some coastal areas of Hawaii, Chile, Japan and the Solomon Islands.

In some coastal areas of Russia and Ecuador, waves of more than 3 meters may occur.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami warning for the Pacific coast of Japan and stated that waves of up to 3 meters could reach the coast of northern Japan.

"Urgent action must be taken to ensure the safety of life and property," the warning said. It was stated that the first waves were expected around 7 pm local time on Tuesday.

The Alaska-based National Tsunami Warning Centre issued a tsunami warning for parts of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, while parts of the West Coast, including California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii, were also under caution.

In early July, five strong earthquakes occurred near Kamchatka, the strongest had a 7.4-magnitude. The largest earthquake was 20 kilometers deep and occurred 144 kilometers east of the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, which has a population of 180,000.

A 9.0 magnitude earthquake in Kamchatka on 4 November 1952 caused 9.1 metre waves in Hawaii, causing damage but no casualties. — Euronews