Huge waves hit off the Chilean coast

Police patrol a debris strewn street in Valparaiso, Chile, after a tsunami, caused by an earthquake. Photo / AP

Waves as big as 15 foot are reportedly being recorded off the Chilean coast.

A magnitude 8.3 earthquake hits 144 miles north of Santiago, sending people running into the streets.

Authorities had issued a tsunami alert for Chile's entire Pacific coast, and the tremor was so strong that people on the other side of the continent reported feeling it.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said that "hazardous" tsunami waves were possible for some parts of Chile's shoreline, including above three meters (10 feet) the tide level.

Tsunami waves were also possible along French Polynesia, Hawaii and California, officials said, as well as smaller waves as far afield as Japan and New Zealand.

The first tsunami waves struck Chile's coast, including the tourist city of Valparaiso, local television pictures showed, but there were no immediate details of damage or injuries.

The precautionary alert for Peru was later called off, civil defense officials said, but scared residents in the city of Ilo, close to the border with Chile, remained out on the streets and on higher ground nonetheless.

Areas expected to be hit

The Pacific Tsunami Warning centre have issued the following statement regarding the magnitude of the quake and the expected impact of any tsunami waves.

Tsunami waves reaching more than 3 meters above the tide level are possible along some coasts of:

• Chile
• French Polynesia
• Mexico
• Ecuador
• Peru
• Antarctica
• Japan
• New
• Caledonia
• Marshall islands
• New Zealand
• Fiji
• Samoa
• American
• Cook islands
• Tokelau
• Vanuatu
• Kiribati
• Johnston island
• Palmyra island
• Howland
• Baker
• Tonga
• Wallis
• Futuna
• Pitcairn Islands
• Niue
• Solomon islands
• Russia
• Hawaii
• Hawaiian Islands
• El salvador
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Costa rica
• Nicaragua
• Panama
• Colombia
• Australia
• Philippines
• Taiwan
• China
• Northern marianas
• Guam
• Palau
• Yap
• Pohnpei
• Chuuk
• Kosrae
• Nauru
• Wake island
• Midway Island
• Jarvis island
• Tuvalu
• Papua new guinea
• Indonesia
• Vietnam
• Malaysia
• Brunei

Recommended actions

• Government agencies responsible for threatened coastal areas should take action to inform and instruct any coastal populations at risk in accordance with their own valuation... Procedures and the level of threat.

• Persons located in threatened coastal areas should stay alert for information and follow instructions from national and local authorities.

Estimated times of arrival

• Estimated times of arrival -eta- of the initial tsunami wave for places within threatened regions are given below.

Actual arrival times may differ and the initial wave may not be the largest. A tsunami is a series of waves and the time between waves can be five minutes to one hour.

Location region coordinates eta(utc)
------------------------------------------------------------
Chimbote peru 9.0s 78.8w 0255 09/17
Puerto montt chile 41.5s 73.0w 0329 09/17
Easter island chile 27.1s 109.4w 0413 09/17
Baltra island ecuador 0.5s 90.3w 0500 09/17
Thurston island antarctica 72.0s 100.0w 0542 09/17
Pitcairn island pitcairn 25.1s 130.1w 0715 09/17
Salina cruz mexico 16.5n 95.2w 0743 09/17
Rikitea french polynesia 23.1s 135.0w 0803 09/17
Cabo san lucas mexico 22.8n 110.0w 0920 09/17
Hiva oa french polynesia 10.0s 139.0w 0924 09/17
Cape adare antarctica 71.0s 170.0e 0928 09/17
Papeete french polynesia 17.5s 149.6w 1012 09/17
Punta abreojos mexico 26.7n 113.6w 1034 09/17
Rarotonga cook islands 21.2s 159.8w 1043 09/17
Flint island kiribati 11.4s 151.8w 1055 09/17
Malden island kiribati 3.9s 154.9w 1141 09/17
Penryn island cook islands 8.9s 157.8w 1147 09/17
Niue island niue 19.0s 170.0w 1150 09/17
Gisborne new zealand 38.7s 178.0e 1215 09/17
Nukualofa tonga 21.0s 175.2w 1219 09/17
Pukapuka island cook islands 10.8s 165.9w 1220 09/17
East cape new zealand 37.7s 178.5e 1221 09/17
Wellington new zealand 41.3s 174.8e 1225 09/17
Pago pago american samoa 14.3s 170.7w 1226 09/17
Christmas islan kiribati 2.0n 157.5w 1231 09/17
Apia samoa 13.8s 171.8w 1240 09/17
North cape new zealand 34.4s 173.3e 1247 09/17
Napier new zealand 39.5s 176.9e 1257 09/17
Wallis island wallis and futun 13.3s 176.3w 1300 09/17
Nukunonu island tokelau 9.2s 171.8w 1302 09/17
Futuna island wallis and futun 14.3s 178.2w 1323 09/17
Palmyra island palmyra island 5.9n 162.1w 1325 09/17
Auckland east new zealand 36.7s 175.0e 1338 09/17
Suva fiji 18.1s 178.4e 1339 09/17
Kanton island kiribati 2.8s 171.7w 1342 09/17
Anatom island vanuatu 20.2s 169.9e 1414 09/17
Howland island howland and bake 0.6n 176.6w 1426 09/17
Johnston island johnston island 16.7n 169.5w 1437 09/17
Noumea new caledonia 22.3s 166.5e 1454 09/17
Esperitu santo vanuatu 15.1s 167.3e 1515 09/17
Santa cruz isla solomon islands 10.9s 165.9e 1539 09/17
Tarawa island kiribati 1.5n 173.0e 1556 09/17
Majuro marshall islands 7.1n 171.4e 1620 09/17
Kwajalein marshall islands 8.7n 167.7e 1647 09/17
Eniwetok marshall islands 11.4n 162.3e 1748 09/17
Ust kamchatsk russia 56.1n 162.6e 1850 09/17
Petropavlovsk russia 53.2n 159.6e 1922 09/17
Urup island russia 46.1n 150.5e 1944 09/17
Kushiro japan 42.9n 144.3e 2028 09/17
Katsuura japan 35.1n 140.3e 2059 09/17
Hachinohe japan 40.5n 141.5e 2108 09/17
Shimizu japan 32.8n 133.0e 2214 09/17
Nobeoka japan 32.5n 131.8e 2217 09/17

Potential impacts

• A tsunami is a series of waves. The time between wave crests can vary from 5 minutes to an hour. The hazard may persist for many hours or longer after the initial wave.

• Impacts can vary significantly from one section of coast to
The next due to local bathymetry and the shape and elevation
Of the shoreline.
• Impacts can also vary depending upon the state of the tide at
The time of the maximum tsunami waves.
• Persons caught in the water of a tsunami may drown... Be
Crushed by debris in the water... Or be swept out to sea.

Tsunami observations

• The following are tsunami wave observations from coastal and/or deep-ocean sea level gauges at the indicated locations.
• The maximum tsunami height is measured with respect to the normal tide level.

Gauge time of maximum wave
Coordinates measure tsunami period
Gauge location lat lon (utc) height (min)
-------------------------------------------------------------
Matarani pe 17.0s 72.1w 0103 0.14m/ 0.5ft 40
Quiriquina cl 36.6s 73.1w 0249 0.83m/ 2.7ft 88
Juan fernandez 33.6s 78.8w 0038 1.21m/ 4.0ft 08
Talcahuano cl 36.7s 73.1w 0253 1.30m/ 4.3ft 90
Dart 32412 18.0s 86.3w 0146 0.05m/ 0.2ft 20
Caldera cl 27.1s 70.8w 0258 0.98m/ 3.2ft 20
Bucalemu cl 34.6s 72.0w 0246 0.76m/ 2.5ft 12
Huasco cl 28.5s 71.2w 0106 0.77m/ 2.5ft 12
Callao la-punta pe 12.1s 77.2w 0231 0.20m/ 0.7ft 38
San felix cl 26.3s 80.1w 0051 0.69m/ 2.3ft 08
Constitucion cl 35.4s 72.5w 0124 0.88m/ 2.9ft 60
Corral cl 39.9s 73.4w 0124 0.22m/ 0.7ft 34
Tocopilla cl 22.1s 70.2w 0046 0.12m/ 0.4ft 38
Chanaral cl 26.4s 70.6w 0043 1.09m/ 3.6ft 30
Taltal cl 25.4s 70.5w 0018 0.25m/ 0.8ft 38
Dart 32401 20.5s 73.4w 0020 0.06m/ 0.2ft 48
Valparaiso cl 33.0s 71.6w 2350 1.62m/ 5.3ft 40
Coquimbo cl 30.0s 71.3w 2339 3.11m/10.2ft 20
San antonio cl 33.6s 71.6w 2358 0.86m/ 2.8ft 18
Dart 32402 26.7s 74.0w 2326 0.12m/ 0.4ft 36