Tsunami warnings remain in place for South America after volcano eruption and major earthquake off Russian coast

Tsunami warnings remain in place across parts of South America after an 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of the Russian far east in the early hours.

Fears of a devastating tsunami in the US and Japan faded over Wednesday after one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded struck Russia’s sparsely populated Kamchatka peninsula.

Colombia, Chile and Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands all saw restrictions and evacuations issued, including beach and school closures. "Remember that the first wave is usually not the strongest," Chilean president Gabriel Boric warned on social media.

Several people were injured during the earthquake, but none seriously and no major damage was reported.

Hours later, lava was seen coming from the Klyuchevskoy volcano on the peninsula as it began to erupt.

But as the region breathed a sigh of relief - with authorities in Hawaii and parts of Japan, Russia and California downgrading their warnings - new evacuation warnings were issued along South America’s Pacific coast.On Kamchatka, near the quake's epicentre, residents fled inland as ports flooded, while cars jammed streets in Honolulu.

Tsunamis are triggered by underwater earthquakes, which cause the seafloor to rise and drop, pushing huge volumes of sea water into waves.