The Mexican government urges people to stay away from Pacific beaches amid tsunami warnings.

The Mexican government has asked civil protection authorities at all levels in the country to keep the population away from Pacific beaches, following a tsunami warning for an 8.7 magnitude earthquake that struck the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia.

The Ministry of the Navy (Semar) said in a report that "strong currents are expected at the entrance to ports" from Baja California, in the northwest of the country, to Chiapas, in the south.

The agency said waves of between 30 centimeters and up to one meter in height are expected along the country's coasts starting at 2:00 a.m. (Central Time) on Wednesday, July 30.

He also called for extreme caution for vessels in port.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) initially said the quake measured 8.0 magnitude, but later raised the reading to 8.7.

The earthquake triggered warnings of waves as high as three meters on the coasts of other countries, according to the U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, based in Honolulu, Hawaii.

"Today's earthquake was severe and the strongest in decades of tremors," Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov said in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app, adding that a kindergarten had been damaged.

A tsunami measuring 3 to 4 meters in height was recorded in some areas of Kamchatka, according to Sergei Lebedev, the regional minister for emergency situations, who urged people to move away from the peninsula's coast.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported that the quake struck at a depth of 19.3 kilometers (12.2 miles) and occurred 126 kilometers (78 miles) east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city of 165,000 people on the coast of Avacha Bay.

The Japan Meteorological Agency adjusted its warning, saying it expected tsunami waves of up to 3 meters to reach large coastal areas starting around 1:00 a.m. (GMT). Japanese broadcaster NHK reported that the government had issued evacuation orders for some areas.

Factory workers and residents in northern Hokkaido evacuated to a hill overlooking the ocean, TBS broadcaster footage showed.

"Please evacuate quickly. If you can, move quickly to higher ground and away from the coast," said an announcer for Japanese public broadcaster NHK .

The U.S. Tsunami Warning System also issued a warning for "dangerous tsunami waves" in the next three hours for some coasts of Russia, Japan, Alaska, and Hawaii. A tsunami watch was also in effect for the U.S. island territory of Guam and other Micronesian islands.

Hawaii has ordered the evacuation of some coastal areas. "Take action! Destructive tsunami waves are expected," the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said in a statement.

The Kamchatka Peninsula is the meeting point of the Pacific and North American tectonic plates, making the region one of the most seismically active zones on the planet.