8.7 magnitude quake hits off Russian Far East, tsunami warning issued

FILE: The magnitude of the earthquake, according to various estimates, reached 8.7, which makes it the strongest earthquake since 1952, the Telegram channel of the Kamchatka branch of the Unified Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences reported. (Photo By Егор Никитин/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

By TASS, Philippine News Agency

PETOPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY – Seismologists recorded a strong earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 150 kilometers from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, where it was felt with a force of about six points, the press service of the Kamchatka branch of the Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences reported.

According to published information, the shock epicenter was located 149 kilometers southeast of the regional capital at a depth of 17 kilometers.

According to a preliminary estimate, in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky the earthquake was felt with a force of 6 points. Later, the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for the Kamchatka region gave an estimate of 7-8 points.

As a TASS correspondent reports, there have already been four tremors this morning. Many people ran out into the street without shoes or outerwear. Wardrobes fell in apartments, mirrors were broken, cars swayed in the street and balconies on buildings shook noticeably. Currently, power outages and mobile phone service failures are being observed in the capital of Kamchatka.

Magnitude 8.7

The magnitude of the earthquake, according to various estimates, reached 8.7, which makes it the strongest earthquake since 1952, the Telegram channel of the Kamchatka branch of the Unified Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences reported.

“The strongest earthquake in the Kamchatka seismic focal zone since 1952 has just occurred. According to various estimates, the magnitude reaches 8.7. This is certainly an outstanding event,” the report says.

The service notes that from the southwest the seismic focus is adjacent to the sources of the earthquakes of July 20, 2025 and August 17, 2024. The rupture extended at least 200 km in a southwesterly direction, along the axis of the deep-sea trench.