A tsunami advisory covering much of B.C.’s coast, triggered after a massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia, was cancelled Wednesday morning.
EmergencyInfoBC rescinded the tsunami advisory just after 6 a.m.
The advisory had included zones covering the North Coast and Haida Gwaii, the Central Coast and northeastern Vancouver Island, including Kitimat, Bella Coola, and Port Hardy, and the outer west coast of Vancouver Island from Cape Scott to Port Renfrew.
The tsunami advisory also covered the Juan de Fuca Strait from the Jordan River area to Greater Victoria, including the Saanich Peninsula.
The advisory did not include the Strait of Georgia, Gulf Islands, Johnstone Strait, or Greater Vancouver.
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The earthquake appeared to be the strongest anywhere in the world since the March 2011 earthquake off northeast Japan that was 9.0 magnitude and caused a massive tsunami that set off meltdowns at a nuclear power plant. Only a few stronger earthquakes have ever been measured around the world.
The quake was centered about 119 kilometers (74 miles) east-southeast from the Russian city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, which has a population of 180,000, on the Kamchatka Peninsula. Multiple aftershocks as strong as 6.9 magnitude were recorded.
The first tsunami wave hit the coastal area of Severo-Kurilsk, the main settlement on Russia’s Kuril Islands in the Pacific, according to the local governor Valery Limarenko. He said residents were safe and staying on high ground until the threat of a repeat wave was gone.
The quake caused damage to buildings and cars swayed in the streets in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, which also had power outages and mobile phone service failures. Russian news agencies quoting the regional Health Ministry saying several people sought medical help in Kamchatka after the earthquake, but no serious injuries were reported.
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With files from The Associated Press.
