HILO, Hawaii -- A tsunami evacuation in Hilo was just an exercise on Monday.

At the sound of the Civil Defense warning sirens, community volunteers and Hawaii County Police officers escorted about 800 people out of the low-lying coastal area of Keaukaha.

"It's very unique by having a school in a middle of a community, sandwiched between the ocean which is a quarter mile away, and an airport which is another quarter mile away," said Robert Almeida, with the Hawaii County Police Department.

Evacuees were escorted across a runway to a staging area at the Hilo International Airport.

Officers said the exercise went smoothly.