Sixth-largest earthquake in world history caused whales to beach on Japanese coast

A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula early Wednesday, immediately triggering tsunami warnings for Japan and the U.S. The quake, one of the six largest ever recorded in the world, set off evacuation orders along the Pacific and sent waves rolling to distant coasts. Hours later, residents in Chiba Prefecture, Japan found four whales washed ashore, raising new environmental concerns in the wake of the disaster.

The earthquake struck at 8:25 a.m. local time, about 75 miles southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky at a depth of 12 miles. Officials in Russia, Japan, Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast quickly issued tsunami warnings, urging residents to move to higher ground. Waves up to 16 feet struck parts of Russia’s Kamchatka and Kuril Islands, flooding the port of Severo-Kurilsk and sweeping away small vessels. Evacuation orders stretched across the Pacific, reaching as far as French Polynesia and the Galapagos Islands as authorities braced for dangerous surges.

Four dead beluga whale carcasses were discovered on a beach in Tateyama, Chiba Prefecture, shortly after the earthquake and tsunami waves reached Japan’s coast. Locals filmed the scene and shared videos on social media, raising questions about whether seismic activity disoriented or killed the animals. No direct link between the beaching and the quake has been confirmed, but marine scientists say large earthquakes can sometimes disturb marine mammal navigation. High water and flooding were also reported in parts of Hokkaido and Sakhalin Island, though no serious casualties were recorded.

Tsunami warnings and evacuation orders were lifted by evening in Japan, Hawaii and along the US west coast as wave heights remained lower than feared. The highest surges measured about 5.5 feet in Hawaii, 4.3 feet on Japan’s east coast and just over 3.5 feet in northern California. Russian emergency services reported only minor injuries as most residents followed evacuation protocols. Officials credited early warning systems and updated building codes for preventing major casualties and widespread destruction.