Tsunami Advisory Issued for Hawaii, West Coast
Friday, Mar 11, 2011 | Updated 4:00 AM PDT
A tsunami advisory was issued by the National Weather Service for the Southern California coast south of Point Concepcion, including the southern part of San Luis Obispo County, as well as the counties of Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego after a an 8.9-magnitude earthquake off Japan's north coast sent waves racing across the Pacific.
A tsunami advisory means that a tsunami with the capacity to produce strong waves that would be dangerous to anyone near or in the water are expected, but that widespread inundation is not expected.
Waves should start to hit Santa Barbara around 8:17 am and the Santa Monica and San Pedro harbors around 8:32 a.m.
According to the National Weather Service "the potential exists for a tsunami 3 feet or less in Southern and Central California."
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