Some 1,500 Easter Island residents began moving to higher ground ahead of the tsunami expected to hit the island at 1747 ET Friday, Chilean Interior Minister Rodrigo Hinzpeter said.

The island, known for its gigantic stone sculptures called Moai, is Chile's westernmost territory.

The tsunami should hit Chile's northernmost continental coast starting at 2123 ET according to the Chilean Navy's Shoa oceanographic service.

"We've begun moving residents to higher ground," Hinzpeter told reporters at the National Emergency Service, or Onemi.

He added the government had reports that the tsunami had been milder than expected when it hit the coasts of Hawaii, California and Mexico.

"This makes us hopeful that we'll come up against a somewhat diminished tsunami that won't cause a great deal of damage," Hinzpeter said.

He called on Chileans, still reeling from last year's 8.8-magnitude earthquake and the tsunami it spawned, to remain calm.

Several ports along the Chilean coast have halted operations and have sent their berthed ships out to the open seas.