Alaska, Hawaii tsunami advisories nixed

Tsunami advisories were canceled Saturday in Alaska and Hawaii after officials determined waves from a powerful earthquake in the northern Pacific were too small to pose a threat.

A tsunami of less than 4 inches was recorded Friday night at Shemya, Alaska, at the western end of the Aleutians, the National Weather Service said.

Alaska's tsunami warning, made after an 8.3 magnitude earthquake struck off Japan's northern coast on Friday, prompted more than two dozen people on a remote Aleutian island to take refuge in an underground shelter.

"It's one of those situations where the indications are, when you look at Shemya and the other places in Japan, it really doesn't meet the criteria to be destructive," said National Weather Service spokesman Greg Romano.

Officials did, however, warn people of strong currents in the Pacific Northwest and Southern California into Saturday morning.

A tsunami watch issued in Hawaii was also canceled.

Tsunami warnings are issued due to the imminent threat of a tsunami. Tsunami watches are issued as an advance alert to areas that could be impacted by a tsunami.

Japan's Meteorological Agency said a small wave hit the shore near the town of Nemuro in northeastern Japan more than an hour after the quake and after officials detected a fall in the level of the tide. Most areas said there had been no visible change to the sea level.

The quake struck about 310 miles east of the Etorofu islands between northern Japan and Russia, the agency said.

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Associated Press reporter Brian Charlton in Honolulu contributed to this report.

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