One of the largest earthquakes ever recorded happened off the Russian coast, triggering tsunami warnings from the U.S. west coast to South America. In Hawaii, people clamored to the top of high-rises and a traffic rush headed away from the coast.

When a magnitude 8.8 earthquake rocked Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on Tuesday, officials warned that damaging tsunami waves could follow. Instead, the waves that reached Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast proved smaller than initially feared.

Videos show the moment when a massive earthquake hit Russia on July 29, leaving residents clinging to furniture as buildings convulsed beneath them. A magnitude 8.8 earthquake with a depth of about 12 miles struck off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:24 p.