Tsunami Stories, Photos From Across California

Murrieta is less than 50 miles from the Pacific Ocean as the crow flies, but as late afternoon falls across the state residents can rest a little easier knowing that friends and family living in coastal areas won’t be under a tsunami warning tonight.

According to the National Weather Service, the tsunami warning for California and Oregon has been downgraded to a tsunami advisory. As a result, there are no tsunami warnings currently in effect for the U.S.

The advisory also remains intact for the coastal areas of Washington, British Columbia and Alaska.

The day was indeed one for the record books. The devastating tsunami that was triggered by the 8.9 magnitude temblor centered off Japan’s northeast coast Friday has left 185 dead, 741 missing and 948 injured in Japan, according to the latest Associated Press reports. Fires, explosions, flooding and nuclear power plant failures are being reported across Japan.

Charles McKee, whose family owns  in Murrieta, said many of his extended family live in Tokyo, Japan.

His mother hasn't been able to reach them by phone yet today.

"She has tried since this morning. But I am sure there are a deluge of calls. We are worried about them, but it doesn't seem to have affected Tokyo as bad as Sendai," McKee said.

When McKee lived in Japan, it was in Misawa and Tokyo. After hearing of the earthquake and resulting tsunamis, he said they have been glued to the news out of Japan all day.

"It is devastating. It is getting worse."

Closer to home in Southern California, beaches were closed today and residents were warned to seek higher ground, but there were no reports of injuries.

Further north in the state, however, some harbors and marinas were severely damaged, and rescue crews are searching for a man who was swept away in Northern California while taking pictures. The damage prompted

According to preliminary reports, California and Oregon saw more damage today than the Hawaiin Islands.

Here’s a roundup of just some of the day’s tsunami reports, both locally and across the state, from Patch.com:

Maggie Avants contributed to this report.