Tsunami waves continue to ripple across Pacific Ocean

Tsunami waves have hit parts of Russia, Japan and the United States after a magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia’s eastern Kamchatka Peninsula.

The tremor - which had a depth of 18km according to the US Geological Survey - is one of the strongest earthquakes ever on record.

There are no reports of any injuries or fatalities, but photos from towns and areas around the far eastern coast of Russia show buildings destroyed, ports submerged and people being evacuated by officials, BBC reports.

Waves generated by the tsunami have started to hit American shores along Hawaii's islands and off the coast of northern California.

Hawaiian officials have downgraded tsunami alerts to an advisory level, and told residents that they may return home with caution.

Western US states - including Washington, Oregon and Alaska - as well as Canada's British Columbia are on alert with waves expected to hit in the coming hours; warnings of varied levels have also been issued for Ecuador, Indonesia, Peru, Colombia and Japan.

Nearly 2 million people in Japan have been ordered to evacuate in parts of the country.

Initial waves reaching Japan have been much smaller, but its meteorological agency says they could grow to 3m (9.8ft).