The 9.0 Mw earthquake occurred on 5 November 1952 at 04:58 local time, triggering a major tsunami that hit Severo-Kurilsk, Kuril Islands, Sakhalin Oblast, Russian SFSR, USSR.

The earthquake occurred off the Kamchatka Peninsula's east coast, which runs parallel to the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, the area where the Pacific and Okhotsk Sea plates converge.

Being older and therefore denser, the Pacific subducts beneath the Kamchatka Peninsula, which sits on the Okhotsk Sea Plate.

[8] The earthquake ruptured a patch of the subduction zone which extends from the northern portion of Onekotan to Cape Shipunskii; approximately 700 km long.

[9] A tsunami was generated 130 kilometers (70 nmi; 81 mi) off of Kamchatka, striking Severo-Kurilsk with three waves about 15–18 meters (49–59 ft) high.

A small portion of the bridge connecting Hilo to nearby Coconut Island was damaged from the strong waves along with houses in the area being stripped from their foundations.