( CNN ) -- A tsunami warning for Hawaii , triggered by a powerful earthquake in Canada , proved nothing more than a pre-Halloween scare for thousands of people this weekend . `` The tourists are doing their best Chicken Little impressions , '' one CNN iReporter in West Maui , Hawaii , wrote early Sunday . Sirens announced the tsunami warning across Hawaii on Saturday night , as thousands of revelers packed streets in Honolulu for the annual Hallowbaloo festival and many others in costumes headed to Halloween parties . Restaurants , clubs and the festival immediately shut down and the parties turned into bumper-to-bumper traffic jams as residents headed to higher ground . Visions of the devastating quake and tsunami that killed thousands in Japan in March 2011 fueled the fright , but the waves proved to be smaller and less powerful than feared . While the warning said waves could surge between 3 and 6 feet , the largest wave , measured in Kahului on the island of Maui , was about 2.5 feet above ambient sea level , according to Gerard Fryer , senior geophysicist at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center . The evacuation orders for coastal residents and the tsunami warning were canceled by 1 a.m. in Hawaii ( 7 a.m . ET ) and a tsunami advisory was put in its place . That advisory was lifted three hours later . Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle said early Sunday that people who had evacuated could return to their homes . CNN affiliate Hawaii News Now reported that was also the case for coastal residents in various parts of the state . Earlier , local television showed images of bumper-to-bumper traffic on roads leading from the coast to higher ground . About 80,000 people live in evacuation zones on the island of Oahu , where Honolulu is located . Read the latest developments in our live blog . Even Hawaiians accustomed to tsunami warnings spared no effort in bracing for the worst . Honolulu resident Victoria Shioi filled her bathtub with water , set her refrigerator to the coldest setting and gathered candles in case of water or power outages . `` Also backed up my computer and put the external ( hard drive ) in the waterproof safe , '' Shioi said . The tsunami was spawned by a sizable earthquake in western British Columbia , prompting a local tsunami warning . `` A ( magnitude ) 7.7 is a big , hefty earthquake -- not something you can ignore , '' Fryer said . `` It definitely would have done some damage if it had been under a city . '' Instead , the quake struck about 139 kilometers ( 86 miles ) south of Masset on British Columbia 's Queen Charlotte Islands . No major damage was reported . The Alaska Tsunami Warning Center issued a warning for western British Columbia from Vancouver to the southern panhandle of Alaska . Canadians as far away as Prince Rupert , on mainland British Columbia , felt the quake . Tanya Simonds said she felt as if her house was `` sliding back and forth on mud , '' but did n't see any damage from the tremor . Shawn Martin was at a movie theater when the quake struck . `` It just felt like the seats were moving . It felt like someone was kicking your seat , '' he said . Martin said more than hundred cars headed toward a popular intersection in the city known for its higher ground . Thousands of miles across the Pacific , residents in Hawaii did the same . CNN 's Joe Sutton , Jake Carpenter , Chandler Friedman and Maggie Schneider contributed to this report .
NEW : the largest wave was about 100 feet above ambient sea level . Northwest : Tsunami advisory issued . Hawaii evacuations are ordered . The tsunami was caused by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake in western Canada .