Peru receives waves of around 1 meter during tsunami alert, without reporting damage

Lima.- The tsunami caused by the 8.8 magnitude earthquake in the Russian peninsula of Kamchatka reached the Peruvian coasts this Wednesday with gentle waves up to one meter high that had no consequences, where up to 126 ports were closed and numerous beaches were evacuated as a preventive measure.

The waves began to reach the coasts of Peru around 13:00 local time (18:00 GMT) in the northern zone of the country and over the next two hours they arrived at the Peruvian coast from north to south with heights of approximately one meter, according to the National Emergency Operations Committee (COEN).

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While the tsunami alert remains active until now and under observation by the Hydrography and Navigation Directorate of the Peruvian Navy, so far no personal and material damages have been reported in the more than 3,000 kilometers of coastline that the country has. In many places, the arrival of this "wave train" was imperceptible to the eyes of the people who, in some places, came close to the coast to try to witness this natural event, despite the authorities' instructions to maintain precautions. Peruvians woke up this Wednesday with a loud electronic alert that reached the cell phones of residents in coastal areas to warn of the temporary closure of access to the beaches. The tsunami alert was issued following an earthquake that occurred at 23:25 GMT on Tuesday off the coast of the Russian peninsula of Kamchatka, on the other side of the Pacific Ocean, with an initial magnitude of 8, which was later revised to 8.8 by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).