Did tsunami hit California yet? When will NWS warnings end amid Hawaii, Alaska disaster

California took the first tsunami hit late on Tuesday, with waves elevating water levels in Crescent City and near the Oregon border

California took the first tsunami hit late on Tuesday, with waves elevating water levels in Crescent City and near the Oregon border. According to National Weather Service data, a wave over 1 foot has already been observed. More waves are expected after midnight. This comes after Hawaii and Alaska took tsunami hits, which were triggered by an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.

A police officer drives at Santa Monica Pier while warning the public about the regular closure time of the pier amid a tsunami warning in Santa Monica (AFP)

As per the NWS, tsunami waves were expected to reach Fort Bragg as early as 11:50 PM PDT on Tuesday. This will be followed by Monterey at 12:15 AM PDT Wednesday, and Port San Luis at 12:35 AM PDT. Waves are projected to hit San Francisco around 12:40 AM PDT, with Santa Barbara seeing impact at 12:45 AM PDT.

Moving southward, Los Angeles Harbor is set for waves at 1:00 AM PDT, while Newport Beach and La Jolla will experience them at 1:10 AM PDT, and Oceanside at 1:15 AM PDT. These projections are based on the most recent update from the National Weather Service.

When will the tsunami situation end?

“A tsunami is not just one wave,” he told the Associated Press. “It’s a series of powerful waves over a long period of time. Tsunamis cross the ocean at hundreds of miles an hour -- as fast as a jet airplane -- in deep water. But when they get close to the shore, they slow down and start to pile up. And that’s where that inundation problem becomes a little bit more possible there."

“In this case, because of the Earth basically sending out these huge ripples of water across the ocean, they’re going to be moving back and forth for quite a while,” which is why some communities may feel effects longer, he said.

(With AP inputs)