Tsunami hitting Hawaii NOW. Japan devastated by 8.9 quake, tsunami. US West Coast under warning, SF, Oregon.

UPDATE 1:14PM Tsunami arrives in CA, not too much damage, though the boats in Santa Cruz harbor are wrecked.

UPDATE @ 11:08 AM: There's not much news about the tsunami on the website of the San Francisco Chronicle, although the warning is still in effect. But, there is the news that surfers are anticipating the potential tsunami:

Surfers in Southern California took advantage of decent waves ahead of the high water expected from a tsunami trekking across the Pacific Ocean.

UPDATE @ 9:58 AM: Here's the latest report from the Mercury News about the warnings and expectations for California:

A tsunami could hit the Northern California coast this morning and send waves as high as 5 feet crashing onto the regions's coastlines.

The National Weather Service has issued a tsunami warning for much of California's coast following the massive 8.9 earthquake that struck off Japan's northeastern coast earlier today, killing between 200 to 300 people.

In Northern California, waves could reach as high as 5.3 feet, according to the weather service. The latest forecast projects waves of 5.3 feet to hit the coastline at Rio Del Mar, 4.2 feet in Pacifica and 3.3 feet in Santa Cruz.

The first waves are expected to hit the Crescent City area at 7:23 a.m., according to the weather service. Once the first waves arrive, the warning may remain in effect for hours.

UPDATE:

RT @heathermg: Oh man, Hawaii newscasters "Oh my god, Diamondhead reef has been completely sucked dry. Two minutes ago it was underwater."

RT @SkyNewsBreak: Japanese News Agency: 200-300 bodies found along coast of northeastern Japan following earthquake

Chris wrote about the massive earthquake in Japan and the tsunami that hit the country. Japan has been devastated. The tsunami has been heading across the Pacific Ocean towards Hawaii and the West Coast of the U.S.

In fact, CNN is reporting that the tsunami is hitting Hawaii now. Watch live coverage from Hawaii here. More from the Hawaii Civil Defense Web site.

Video of the tsunami hitting Japan here and below. This first video is simply stunning:









Google person finder has launched to help find missing loved ones in Japan.



From the Star-Advertiser:

A 6.5-foot tsunami is expected to reach Kauai at 3:07 a.m. today after it passed Midway Island at a height of 8.2 feet, according to the National Weather Service.

The tsunami that was generated from an 8.9-magnitude quake in Japan is expected to strike Oahu at 3:14 a.m.

The weather service reminded people that there will be a series of waves and the first wave may not be the biggest.

People on Oahu will be barred from entering tsunami inundation zones after 2 a.m. this morning, Mayor Peter Carlisle said.

This is the warning for the San Francisco area:

...TSUNAMI WARNING IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL CALIFORNIA COAST INCLUDING SAN FRANCISCO AND MONTEREY BAY...

A TSUNAMI WAS GENERATED AND IS EXPECTED TO CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST. PERSONS AT THE COAST SHOULD BE ALERT TO INSTRUCTIONS FROM LOCAL EMERGENCY OFFICIALS.