America has been hit by several tsunami waves after a magnitude 8.8 earthquake, the world's largest in 14 years, struck off the coast of Russia.
The tremor, which was first picked up shortly after midnight in the UK, struck below the waters of the Kamchatka peninsula on Wednesday morning.
Tsunami alerts were soon issued across Japan and the US's Pacific territories - with waves as high as four metres going on to hit land in Russia.
Locals in Japan, Hawaii, Russia, Indonesia, the Philippines and other areas affected were ordered to evacuate as the tsunami crossed the sea.
Workers at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, which was heavily damaged by the 2011 Sendai quake, were ordered to leave - with today's quake the most powerful on record since then.
In Hawaii, set to become the first inhabited part of the US affected by the tsunami, 10-foot waves are expected to strike.
The Mayor of capital Honululu told residents to move to higher ground, while Hawaii's governor urged people to immediately evacuate the coasts.
BEFORE AND AFTER: Beachgoers in Shirahama, western Japan, evacuate a beach after the tsunami warning was issued
|REUTERS
Elsewhere, an order has been issued for all commercial vessels to leave all harbours at once and make their way out to sea.
All harbours have been closed to incoming traffic.
Earlier in the same state, traffic camera footage showed queues of cars scrambling to drive to higher ground in state capital Honolulu ahead of an expected wave.
The US Tsunami Warning System had earlier issued a warning of "hazardous tsunami waves", saying waves reaching one to three metres above the tide level are possible along some costs of Guam, Hawaii and Japan.
The country's National Weather Service warned some residents they are "in danger".
"Get away from coastal waters. Move to high ground or inland now. Keep away from the coast until local officials say it is safe to return," the department said.
President Donald Trump told his countrymen to "stay strong, and stay safe".
"Due to a massive earthquake that occurred in the Pacific Ocean, a tsunami warning is in effect for those living in Hawaii.
"A tunami watch is in effect for Alaska and the Pacific Coast of the United States. Japan is also in the way. STAY STRONG AND STAY SAFE!"
Donald Trump told his countrymen to 'stay strong, and stay safe'
| REUTERSThe UK Foreign Office, meanwhile, has handed out a total of 15 travel warnings to Britons in countries and territories affected.
In order of release, those are:
- Chile;
- Costa Rica;
- Kiribati;
- French Polynesia;
- The US;
- Peru;
- Samoa;
- Japan;
- Solomon Islands;
- Ecuador;
- Russia;
- New Zealand;
- Tonga;
- China;
- Taiwan.
PICTURED: A television screen shows a news report on Japan Weather Agency's tsunami warning, saying it expected tsunami waves of up to three metres to reach large coastal areas in Japan
|REUTERS
New Zealand's disaster management agency, meanwhile, warned that the country's coastal areas could expect "strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges at the shore".
Since the original alert, the Japanese Government upgraded the tremor from an "advisory" to a warning, expecting tsunami waves as high as three metres to arrive along the coast.
According to Japanese media, the upgrade to a warning means tsunami waves are approaching the coasts.
People have been told to evacuate as quickly as possible and continue to evacuate until all warnings are lifted.
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Local traffic cameras showed queues of cars scrambling to reach higher ground in Honolulu, Hawaii, ahead of an expected tsunami
The entirety of the US Pacific coast and Hawaii has been placed under either a warning (red), advisory (orange) or 'watch' (yellow)
|NOAA
The earthquake off Kamchatka, a region in Russia's far east, was called the "strongest in decades" by Vladimir Solodov, the local governor, in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app.
People were urged to move away from the coastline as Russia - the first country hit - declared a tsunami threat.
Kamchatka's regional governor initially said no injuries had been caused by the earthquake, but a nursery had been damaged.
A nursery was damaged in the initial quake, Kamchatka's regional governor said
|REUTERS
In a later update by state media outlet Tass, several people suffered "minor injuries" in the quake.
The small Russian town of Severo-Kurilsk in the Sakhalin region was among the first places evacuated, according to the region's governor.
The epicentre of the earthquake sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a geologically active region prone to major earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
After the first quake, as many as 30 additional tremors ranging from 2 to 5 in magnitude were detected off Kamchatka.
The initial earthquake was originally reported to have a magnitude of 8, but was later upgraded to a major 8.7 - then 8.8.