Four whales were filmed stranded on the coast of Heisaura Beach, in the Japanese city of Tateyama, just a few hours before the Japanese authorities issued a tsunami alert.
The alert about the whales stranded on the coast was a consequence of the impressive earthquake of 8.8 magnitude recorded off the Kamchatka Peninsula, in eastern Russia.
A local resident, who was heading to the sea to assess the conditions before surfing, was the first person to spot the cetaceans on the shore.
According to the report by the Japanese television network NHK, the man recorded a video showing several of the whales flapping their fins stranded on the coast, which quickly went viral on social media.
In statements to the media, the witness mentioned that, although he had witnessed isolated cases of stranded whales before, this was the first time he saw four together. “I had only seen one stranded whale before, but this is the first time I see five,” he said.
They Appeared Stranded on the Coast Due to the Seismic Phenomenon
This unusual event coincided with the seismic phenomenon recorded in the early hours of Wednesday (local time) off the Kamchatka Peninsula, east of Russia, with a magnitude of 8.8.
As a result of this earthquake, a tsunami alert was issued for several regions of the Pacific Ocean, including the eastern coast of Japan. However, this alert has been recently deactivated.
The first tsunami waves reached Japanese territory at 10:30 local time (1:30 GMT), being detected in the city of Hanasaki, in Nemuro, with an approximate height of 30 centimeters.
In the following hours, similar magnitude tsunamis were reported in other coastal locations such as Hamanaka, the port of Kushiro, and Ako. According to updated data from the Japanese authorities, waves of up to 60 centimeters were observed in the municipalities of Kuji, in Iwate Prefecture, and in Hamanaka, in Hokkaido Prefecture.
Given this sea behavior, the Japan Meteorological Agency warned that larger tsunamis could still arrive, so the alert remains active along much of the country’s Pacific coast.
On the other hand, a video circulated on social media showing fishermen assisting five stranded beluga whales on the coast of Kamchatka.
The fact that the whales appeared stranded on the coast sparked speculation about a possible relationship with the recent seismic activity. However, it was confirmed that the images correspond to an event that took place in August 2023 and are not related to the earthquake on Tuesday or the subsequent tsunami.