LOS ANGELES - California Governor Jerry Brown on Friday declared a state of emergency in several places hit by tsunami.

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The state of emergency was issued for Del Norte, Humboldt, San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties following the 8.8-magnitude earthquake and tsunami off the coast of Japan, which generated a water surge along the California coast, causing damage to ports, harbors and infrastructure.

The water surge caused by the tsunami inundated California beaches, ports, and harbors, destroying public and private property and threatening numerous structures, which caused the evacuation of residents and the opening of emergency shelters, Brown said.

The water surge is causing conditions of extreme peril to the infrastructure and the safety of the persons and properties within the above counties, according to the governor.

"The circumstances of this tsunami and water surge, by reason of their magnitude, are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment and facilities of any single county, city and county, or city and require the combined forces of a mutual aid region or regions to combat," Brown said.

He ordered all agencies of the state government to utilize and employ state personnel, equipment and facilities to provide assistance to the tsunami-hit areas.

Officials estimated millions of dollars in damage from the tsunami.

The hardest-hit was Crescent City, where an eight-foot wave rushed into the harbor, destroying about 35 boats and ripping chunks off the wooden docks.