Tsunami waves reached Hawaii and the West Coast after one of the strongest earthquakes in recorded history, a magnitude 8.8 temblor, struck off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on July 29 before most of the warnings were downgraded hours later.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center says the earthquake struck at 1:25 p.m. HST off the east coast of Kamchatka.

While South Florida is safe from earthquake and tsunami threats, many are wondering about how the phenomena work.