People sought higher ground on Wednesday after Japan’s meteorological agency issued a tsunami alert for Japan’s Pacific coast. The Japan Meteorological Agency said a first tsunami wave of about 30 centimeters (about 1 foot) reached Nemuro on the eastern coast of Hokkaido. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said waves of 1 to 3 meters (yards) above tide level were possible along some coastal areas of Hawaii, Chile, Japan and the Solomon Islands.