TODAY published July 31, 2025: Massive 8.8 Earthquake off Russia Leaves Millions in US on Edge.
New images capture the moment a massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck Eastern Russia. In the hours that followed, more than 100 aftershocks were recorded with the earthquake sending Hawaii and the entire West Coast of the United States in the path of a potentially dangerous tsunami. NBC’s Liz Kreutz reports for TODAY from Honolulu.
Firstpost published August 2, 2025: How Dangerous Was Russia's 8.8-Magnitude Earthquake & Tsunami In Japan?
A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, sending tsunami waves racing across the Pacific and sparking panic from Japan to Hawaii to Chile. Port towns in Russia were flooded, evacuations were ordered for millions, and a volcano erupted shortly after the quake. One of the strongest earthquakes in recorded history, it caused widespread alerts but, fortunately, limited destruction. Scientists warn of possible aftershocks and urge continued caution. With tsunami warnings now lifted, the world breathes a sigh of relief—but the event is a stark reminder of nature's power. Is the worst truly over? Watch our full report to find out.
Mirror Now published July 29, 2025: Tsunami Hits Japan And Islands In Russia After 8.8-magnitude Earthquake Off Russia.
A tsunami has hit coastal areas of Russia’s Kuril Islands and Japan’s large northern island of Hokkaido after a powerful, 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Russia early Wednesday.
The Associated Press
written by Vladimir Isachenkov
Thursday July 31, 2025
MOSCOW — A powerful earthquake struck Wednesday off Russia’s Far East coast, flooding a fishing port with waves from a tsunami, cutting power to a few areas and sending some panicked residents fleeing buildings but causing only a few injuries.
Regional authorities say they were prepared for the 8.8-magnitude quake and the subsequent waves, and moved quickly to keep residents safe. They introduced a state of emergency in some areas, but said there was no major damage.
Here is what to know about the Russian areas hit by the quake and tsunami:
Kamchatka peninsula
Dubbed the “land of fire and ice,” Kamchatka is one of the most active volcanic regions on Earth. It has about 300 volcanoes, with 29 of them still active, according to NASA’s Earth Observatory. Quakes and tsunamis regularly strike the peninsula that lies close to an ocean trench where two tectonic plates meet.
The 1,200-kilometer (750-mile)-long peninsula nine time zones east of Moscow faces the Pacific Ocean on its east and the Sea of Okhotsk along its west coast. Kamchatka and a few nearby islands have a population of about 290,000 with about 162,000 of them living in the regional capital of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in Avacha Bay on the peninsula’s southeast.
There are few roads on the peninsula, and helicopters are the only way to reach most areas. Fishing is the main economic activity.
The tallest volcano is Klyuchevskaya Sopka (4,750 meters or 15,584 feet), the largest active volcano in the Northern Hemisphere. Observers heard explosions and saw streams of lava on its western slopes, according to the Kamchatka branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ geophysical service. It last erupted in 2023.
A nuclear submarine base
Kamchatka hosts a major Russian nuclear submarines base in Vilyuchinsk in Avacha Bay. The base is home to five state-of-the-art Borei-class submarines armed with nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles, a key element of the country’s nuclear triad of land, sea and air forces.
Vilyuchinsk also hosts several nuclear-powered attack submarines, including some of the most advanced in the Russian navy’s inventory.
The quake raised questions about whether the Vilyuchinsk base suffered any damage. The Defense Ministry hasn’t reported any problems, and there was no independent way to check on the condition of the base that is closed to outsiders.
Military experts say, however, that Avacha Bay protects the base from tsunami waves and note it was constructed to take into account the seismic threat.
Retired Russian navy Capt. Vasily Dandykin told the daily Moskovsky Komsomolets that all facilities in Vilyuchinsk were designed to withstand earthquakes. He said the quake posed no threat to the nuclear submarines.
Russian media have reported the base is expected to serve as the home for nuclear-powered submarines intended to carry nuclear-armed and atomic-powered Poseidon torpedoes that have intercontinental range and are designed to explode near coastlines and cause what some military experts describe as a radioactive tsunami. The Poseidon has been veiled in secrecy, but President Vladimir Putin said last year that its tests were nearing completion.
The Kuril islands
The four volcanic islands, known in Russia as the Kurils, stretch between Kamchatka and the Japanese island of Hokkaido.
The islands were captured by the Soviet Union from Japan in the closing days of World War II. Japan asserts territorial rights to the islands it calls the Northern Territories, and the dispute has kept the countries from signing a peace treaty
The islands have a population of about 20,000, and the local economy is based on fishing. The Russian military has bolstered its presence in the area, refurbishing a Soviet-era air base and other outposts.
The impact of the quake and tsunami
The 8.8-magnitude quake, centered about 120 kilometers (75 miles from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, struck at 11:24 a.m. local time (2324 GMT Tuesday, 7:24 p.m. EDT Tuesday) at a depth of about 21 kilometers (13 miles), according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Multiple aftershocks as strong as 6.9 magnitude followed.
The earthquake appeared to be the strongest on record since the 9.1 magnitude earthquake off northeastern Japan in March 2011 that caused a massive tsunami. Only a few stronger earthquakes have ever been measured anywhere.
Authorities on Kamchatka and the Kurils said they were prepared for a major quake for a long time and acted quickly to protect the population. Officials on Kamchatka said several people were injured, including a hospital patient injured while jumping out of a window. All were in satisfactory condition.
Municipal workers inspected hundreds of apartment buildings but didn’t find any signficant damage that would warrant evacuating residents.
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky was protected from big tsunami waves by its location on Avacha Bay. In Severo-Kurilsk, the Kurils’ main city, tsunami waves as high as 6 meters (over 3 feet) flooded the fishing port and swept fishing boats out to sea.
The Indian Express published July 30, 2025: Firestorm on Ice: Russia’s Tallest Volcano Erupts After Monster Quake Rocks Kamchatka.
Russia Volcano Eruption: Russia’s Klyuchevskoy volcano began erupting after a powerful 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Kamchatka on July 30. Lava flowed down the western slope, with visible glows and explosions, according to the Russian Academy of Sciences. Located 450 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Klyuchevskoy is one of the world’s tallest and most active volcanoes. Scientists had warned of an eruption as lava filled the crater and ash plumes rose. Kamchatka, home to 300 volcanoes (29 active), is a major seismic zone. The quake caused building damage and injuries and triggered tsunami alerts across the Pacific.
South China Morning Post
written by AFP and AP
Saturday August 2, 2025
A volcano erupted for the first time in 475 years in Russia’s eastern Kamchatka region, the nation’s emergency authority said on Sunday, days after one of the strongest earthquakes on record hit the region.
Pictures released by Russian state media show a towering plume of ash spewing from the Krasheninnikov volcano, which last erupted in 1550, according to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program.
The plume is estimated to have reached an altitude of 6,000 metres (19,700 feet), Kamchatka’s Ministry of Emergency Situations said in a post on Telegram.
“The plume is spreading eastward from the volcano toward the Pacific Ocean. There are no populated areas along its path, and no ashfall has been recorded in inhabited localities,” the ministry said.
The volcano had been assigned an “orange” aviation hazard code, the ministry added, meaning that flights in the area might be disrupted.
It came after Klyuchevskoy, another volcano in the region – the highest active in Europe and Asia – erupted on Wednesday.
Eruptions of Klyuchevskoy are quite common, with at least 18 occurring since 2000, according to the Global Volcanism Program.
Olga Girina, head of the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruption Response Team, confirmed it was the “first historically confirmed eruption of Krasheninnikov volcano” for centuries, according to Russian state media.
She added that the eruption might be connected to the earthquake on Wednesday that triggered tsunami warnings in Japan and as far away as French Polynesia and Chile.
The worst damage was seen in Russia, where a tsunami crashed through the port of Severo-Kurilsk and submerged a fishing plant, officials said.
The magnitude 8.8 quake struck off Petropavlovsk on Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula and was the strongest since 2011, when a magnitude 9.1 quake off Japan caused a tsunami that killed more than 15,000 people.
Dubbed the “land of fire and ice”, Kamchatka is one of the most active volcanic regions on Earth.
It has about 300 volcanoes, with 29 of them still active, according to Nasa’s Earth Observatory. Quakes and tsunamis regularly strike the peninsula that lies close to an ocean trench where two tectonic plates meet.
The 1,200km (750-mile) long peninsula nine time zones east of Moscow faces the Pacific Ocean on its east and the Sea of Okhotsk along its west coast.
Kamchatka and a few nearby islands have a population of about 290,000, with about 162,000 of them living in the regional capital of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in Avacha Bay on the peninsula’s southeast.
There are few roads on the peninsula, and helicopters are the only way to reach most areas. Fishing is the main economic activity.
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