Wednesday evening in Waikiki ended in classic Hawaiian style, with a stunning red, orange and gold sunset, children laughing and splashing in waves lapping the shore – and parents sipping cocktails from plastic cups.

A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula triggered tsunami waves of up to 16 feet nearby, and sparked evacuation orders in Japan, Hawaii and across the Pacific on Wednesday (July 30).

Residents and visitors across the Hawaiian Islands were sent scrambling after a tsunami warning was sent out on Tuesday.

Hawaii officials say the timing of the tsunami warning and evacuation orders following this week's massive earthquake off Russia helped make for severe traffic congestion in some areas

Over a million Hawaii residents and visitors spent more than seven hours under threat of a potentially highly destructive tsunami Tuesday that triggered evacuations from low-lying coastal areas statewide.

The worst predictions did not come to pass after a major earthquake off the coast of Russia sent a surge of water across the Pacific.

FlTsunami warnings are still in place a day after a huge earthquake rocked the Pacific. The 8.8 magnitude quake, one of the strongest ever recorded, struck off the coast of Russia’s far east in the early hours of Wednesday morning.