Several Chilean coastal towns were flooded from small tsunami waves set off by a magnitude-8.3 earthquake, but Hawaii saw only minor sea-level changes and wave height increases early Thursday before a tsunami advisory was canceled.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center canceled its tsunami advisory at 7:33 a.m. No evacuations were ordered, and tsunami warning sirens were not activated. There was no damage reported.

As predicted, the first tsunami-generated wave hit the shores of the Big Island at 3:20 a.m., and measured about 3 feet, according to the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.

Peter Hirai, deputy director of the city Emergency Management Agency, said the first tsunami-generated wave to hit Oahu arrived at 4:50 a.m. at Honolulu Harbor and was about a foot high.

At 5 a.m., Pacific Tsunami Warning Center gauges recorded sea-level changes of about 3 feet above normal off Hilo. Sea-level changes decreased as waves went farther west, with Kahului seeing a surge of about 2 feet above normal and Honolulu and Nawiliwili, Kauai, recording waves of just a few inches above normal.

The quake was measured at a preliminary magnitude of 7.9 but was later upgraded to 8.3, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was centered near the coast of central Chile and struck Wednesday at 12:54 p.m. Hawaii time.

A tsunami watch, followed by a statewide advisory, was issued just after 3 p.m. Wednesday.

Hanauma Bay and coastal areas around the state were closed Thursday morning. Hanauma will remain closed Friday as a precaution.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources reopened coastal and low-lying state parks and forest areas after the advisory was lifted and an assessment of ocean conditions was made. Maui County reopened beach parks at 8 a.m.

Officials, however, still urged caution for ocean users due to the possibility of strong and unusual currents.

Chilean officials reported eight deaths and more than 1 million evacuated.

The quake lasted for three minutes, causing buildings to sway in the capital, Santiago, and prompting authorities to issue a tsunami warning for the Andean nation’s entire Pacific coast. People sought safety in the streets of inland cities, while others along the shore took to their cars to race to higher ground.

“I thought it was the end of the world and we were going to die,” said teary-eyed Manuel Moya, 38, sleeping with his wife on the ground outside their destroyed home in Illapel, 175 miles north of Santiago and 34 miles east of the quake’s epicenter.

In February 2010 a magnitude-8.8 quake and ensuing tsunami in south-central Chile killed more than 500 people, destroyed 220,000 homes and washed away docks, riverfronts and seaside resorts. That quake released so much energy, it shortened Earth’s day by a fraction of a second by changing the planet’s rotation.

A tsunami generated by the 2010 quake reached Hawaii’s shores but was smaller than expected and did not cause any substantial damage. The largest wave surge, just over 3 feet, was recorded in Kahului, while Honolulu saw tsunami waves of under a foot.