Moment cruise ships abandon passengers in 'danger zone' amid tsunami warning triggered by 8.8 magnitude earthquake
A group of "terrified" cruise ship passengers were abandoned in Hawaii after a major tsunami warning this morning.
Listen to this article
In footage shared online, passengers were seen sprinting to catch their cruise - while others reported being left behind on the island.
In a TikTok video shared by @mandythecruiseplanner, she said: "The ship is leaving and now we're going to higher ground and people are upset, and this is not me making light of the situation, this is me just saying it's crazy, it's chaos."
She added: "Nobody knows what's going on, our bus driver had no idea what's happening. People on the ship, we have family on the ship, they're terrified for us. We're terrified for us.
"We're going to be going to higher ground now, I'll keep you posted about what's happening, I did not expect this. People are crying, we're going to higher ground, an employer is yelling at people, people are yelling at the employee, this is crazy."
Read more: LIVE: Tsunami hits the US and Japan as millions flee homes after 8.8-magnitude earthquake off Russia
Another TikTok user, @demifreeman shared a video from the deck of a cruise ship, where people could be seen running towards the boat, with the on-screen text: "POV: tsunami in Hawaii and your cruise is leaving without people".
Hawaii had been on a tsunami alert since the early hours of the morning following an 8.8-magnitude earthquake that hit the east of Russia at about 11:25am local time - the sixth largest on record.
Large waves struck Hawaii, the US, Russia and Japan.
Almost two million people had been told to evacuate Japan.
At around 10am BST - officials stated the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) downgraded the tsunami warning to a tsunami advisory in Hawaii, with the evacuation order lifted for the area.
Tsunami warnings have also been downgraded in Japan and Russia.