Tonga volcano eruption triggers tsunami warnings in Japan and Pacific islands

The eruption of an underwater volcano off Tonga, which triggered a tsunami warning for several South Pacific island nations, is seen in a satellite image (Credits: Reuters)

New Delhi: A massive undersea volcanic eruption in the island country of Tonga caused a wave surge in the Pacific on Saturday and has resulted in triggering tsunami warnings in Japan and the Pacific islands.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said that it expected surge waves of up to 3 meters (10 feet) to reach the Amami and Tokara Islands, both part of the Ryukyu archipelago stretching southwest to Taiwan.

In a briefing, a Japan Meteorological Agency official urged people not to go near the sea until the tsunami advisory and more serious tsunami warnings had been lifted. The warnings - the first in more than five years - covered several specific areas.

The Russian emergency authorities in the Pacific coast district of Sakhalin said that the underwater eruption could trigger waves of up to 20 centimetres (8 inches) in the Kuril Islands.

Over a hundred families were evacuated on Saturday from shoreline Samoan villages after a violent volcanic eruption in the Pacific island country of Tonga caused waves to surge.

The eruption of the underwater Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha`apai volcano has sparked tsunami alerts across the South Pacific.

More than 2,300 kilometers away in New Zealand, officials were warning of storm surges from the eruption.

On Tonga, home to about 1,05,000 people, video posted to social media showed large waves washing ashore in coastal areas, swirling around homes and buildings, including a church.

A tsunami advisory was also in effect for the U.S. and Canadian Pacific coast, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu said. The National Weather Service said tsunami waves along the Oregon and southern Washington coast were expected imminently. High waves were reported in Alaska and Hawaii earlier.

In the San Francisco Bay Area of northern California, small parts of the cities of Berkeley and Albany near the bay were ordered to evacuate.

(With agency inputs)