A magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck near Russia last Tuesday, leading to a tsunami advisory along the Bay Area coastline, 4-foot-high waves in Crescent City and evacuation warnings in Monterey. It also appeared to threaten the precarious existence of one of the rarest animals on Earth.

A powerful earthquake that struck off the coast of Russia has generated tsunami warnings and advisories for a broad section of the Pacific, including Alaska, Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast

An 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s eastern coast on late Wednesday morning, local time. The quake triggered tsunami waves across the Pacific that hit Russia, Japan, Canada and parts of the US coast.