A tsunami advisory was issued for the entire West Coast following a volcanic eruption in the Tonga Islands Saturday morning.
Back home in California, the advisory in effect for the coastal Bay Area and Santa Cruz prompted evacuation orders in the Berkeley Marina.
It was an early wake up call for residents of the area who say police told them to leave and over 100 people have been evacuated.
According to Berkeley police, evacuation orders were lifted for boats and docks at the Berkeley Marina Saturday afternoon. The tsunami advisory is still in effect. They are recommending the public to use caution on boats and docks.
The evacuation was clear; “get out of your boat and off the docks now,” the Alameda County Office of Emergency Services tweeted Saturday morning.
Sarah Greenwood, a resident of the area, was asleep.
“They drove by with the patrol boats and also walked up and down the docks with loud speakers telling us to evacuate immediately about 7:20 this morning,” she said.
Another long time Berkeley resident, Kat Schaaf, was alerted by a friend.
“I got a call from a friend in San Francisco. She said ‘be careful because there is something coming,’ then immediately after that – ‘knock, knock, knock’,” she explained.
The Red Cross arrived quickly to help. Some people left and others waited in cars.
“I’m more worried about the residents of Tonga,” a resident said. “Yeah, we’re okay here.”
Berkeley police told NBC Bay Area 113 people were evacuated form the Marine shoreline area and access was restricted.
There’s no word yet on how long will the advisory be in place, but police said the state was hoping for a sustained period where currents were not as strong.
Jaqueline Botts with the California Geological Survey was asked to observe the current.
“I’ve seen a couple boats try to come in and to the harbor like three or four times,” she said, “and just turn around and go back out because the current is too strong.”
No damage has been reported so far, but Berkeley police said when the advisory is over the city will inspect the docks to check for damage.
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Source: NBC Bay Area