ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A tsunami warning sent residents of two remote Aleutian Islands to high ground Friday night, but the warning was canceled after waves recorded by tidal sensors proved to be small, officials said.

The warning was issued after an 8.3-magnitude earthquake in the northern Pacific off Japan.

At 11:30 p.m. PST, the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center canceled the tsunami warning and watch it had issued for portions of the coasts of Alaska and British Columbia.

The warning had been "advisory only" for Washington, Oregon and California.

"No destructive tsunami threat exists for Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon or California," the Tsunami Warning Center said. "However some areas may experience observable effects which could include strong currents in harbors and bays dangerous to those in or near the water."

A tsunami of less than 4 inches was recorded Friday night at Shemya, Alaska, at the western end of the Aleutians, the National Weather Service said.

The 27 people on the island, a former military base, took refuge in an underground shelter, as did residents in nearby Attu.

"Indications are that a tsunami was generated, but small in nature," said Weather Service spokesman Greg Romano.

Small waves of less than 4 inches also were recorded in Japan at the following locations: Hanasaki, Kushiro, Ofunato, Kamaishi and Miyako, the Alaska tsunami center said.

Attu has only about 20 people who staff a Coast Guard station. Shemya is populated by about 27 people, caretakers of an Air Force station.