No Tsunami for Oregon Coast, California Experience is Minor

Published 02/27/2010

In Seaside, no siren warnings were sounded.

(Oregon Coast) – After an 8.8 earthquake devastated parts of southern Chile early Saturday morning, much of the west coast of the United States was under a tsunami warning or advisory.

The advisory on the Oregon coast has been lifted.

In Hawaii, the threat was taken much more seriously as many were evacuated from beach areas. On the Oregon coast, a tsunami advisory was issued early in the morning, but essentially this has turned into a non-event on these beaches.

The Chilean earthquake did send waves racing across the Pacific, severely damaging some isolated islands. Warnings were also issued all over the Pacific, from Japan, Russia, the Philippines and New Zealand to Alaska.

Newport's Seafood and Wine Fest was not altered in any way because of the tsunami advisories.

Along Oregon beaches, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicted some minor rise in waves could occur. “Persons in tsunami advisory areas should move out of the water, off the beach and out of harbors and marinas,” the NOAA said earlier in a bulletin.

NOAA said trouble might start around 1 p.m. with stronger than normal currents in bays and harbors, and some possibility of what would amount to slightly larger sneaker waves on beaches. So far, there have been no reports of anything unusual.

Newport's Seafood and Wine Festival – which is held right on Yaquina Bay – experienced no alteration in its plans. No beaches in Oregon were evacuated, including Seaside.

Rescue teams were dug in near the shore along the coast, just in case. Officials said there were possibilities of stronger rip currents - dangers hidden within the waves, not visible to the eye.

No beaches in Oregon were evacuated.

“It was pretty much a non-event,” said Keith Chandler, manager of Seaside Aquarium. He watched the beaches closely and noticed nothing. The most exciting part, however, was the buzzing of media in the area.

“All the TV news stations were here,” Chandler said.

The scare in Hawaii had its ripple effect on some on the Oregon coast. Kyle Matthews, who works at Warren House Pub in Cannon Beach, was alarmed by Hawaii’s situation because she had several friends on the island state. Among them were her boss, Ken Campbell – owner of Warren House – his daughter Anna Campbell and her child.

“They were evacuated to some mall about 5:30 a.m.,” Matthews said. “But everyone’s alright.”

Bays and harbors - like at Garibaldi - may experience some stronger currents.

NOAA’s warning for Hawaii was canceled in the afternoon, but it still maintained there could be dangers for a while.

“Do not reenter evacuated shoreline areas until announced by your county civil defense agency,” the NOAA said in a bulletin. “Stay tuned to your local broadcast stations for the all-clear announcement for your area.”

Predictions for any possible rise in water height on the Oregon coast were extremely small, however. NOAA estimates had all rises at .2 feet or less.

The warnings for California were a little more severe, with predictions as much as two feet higher in wave height. Some bigger waves did Los Angeles beaches, however. The LA Times is reporting there was a 2.2 surge in Santa Monica and three-foot one in Ventura, which did some minor damage to a harbor facility there.

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