Video: Tsunami warning downgraded in Hawaii Footage from KITV news shows the 17 inch waves hitting a beach in Hawaii after authorities issued a tsunami warning that caused thousands to evacuate their homes. Local reports said the warning had been issued because the island was at "the centre of where the most potent energy was transmitted out of [the] earthquake." The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the first tsunami wave was three feet high and less forceful than expected. Some forecasts had predicted a wave of up to six feet high. The warning has since been downgraded.