'Mega tsunami' warning as 3 regions face being wiped out by 1,000ft wave

Scientists have issued a warning about a mega-tsunami possibly sweeping entire communities across the US - with monstrous waves.

A mega-, which is a catastrophic wave caused by a displacement of ocean water, can be triggered by earthquakes, landslides and volcanic eruptions. Three regions in the US have faced an ongoing threat of the rare phenomenon for years due to being located close to disaster zones.

Alaska, Hawaii, and the have all been at risk, with the West Coast receiving a renewed warning. According to a new study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, an earthquake could erupt along the Cascadia Subduction Zone. The space includes a 700-mile stretch that runs from northern California up to British Columbia.

READ MORE:

Experts stressed the fault line has a 15% chance of making a magnitude 8.0 or greater within the next 50 years. According to the team behind the study, a disaster to this extent could cause parts of coastal land to subside by over six feet instantly. Such an event could cause devastating effects which last for centuries, as .

“The expansion of the coastal floodplain following a Cascadia subduction zone earthquake has not been previously quantified, and the impacts to land use could significantly increase the timeline to recovery,” said Tina Dura, the lead author of the study.

The research concluded: "Preparing for these compound hazards can minimise long-term damage, ensure resilient communities, and protect critical coastal ecosystems from permanent degradation. Our findings aim to support decision-makers and coastal residents in the Cascadia Subduction Zone—and globally—as they brace for the combined challenges of seismic activity and climate-driven changes.”

Alaska and Hawaii are already under alert due to their geological activity and environmental changes. Alaska is at risk of landslides over melting glaciers, and Hawaii has a background of unstable volcanoes, .

Steve Masterman, director of Alaska's Division of Geological Surveys, previously stressed that mega-tsunamis are becoming increasingly likely as temperatures warm.

The expert said back in 2020: “The most noteworthy of these tsunamis was in 1958, when a landslide entered the Lituya Bay Fiord in Glacier Bay and generated a wave that went 1,700 feet up the opposite side of the fiord. The most recent was at Southeast Alaska’s Taan Glacier in 2015, where a wave went 600 feet up the opposite wall of the glacial valley.”