http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33075304/ns/world_news-asiapacific8.0 magnitude quake hits off American Samoa
Tsunami reportedly hits capital after temblor centered southwest of islands
Reuters
A tsunami warning was issued for New Zealand and other small Pacific islands after a major 8.0 magnitude quake struck in the ocean off American Samoa, U.S. government agencies said on Tuesday.
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Major quake hits South Pacific
Sept. 29: A powerful earthquake has struck in the South Pacific between Samoa and American Samoa. A tsunami alert has been issued for the region. Msnbc's David Shuster and Tamron Hall speak with The Weather Channel's Dr. Steve Lyons.
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WASHINGTON - A powerful 8.0 magnitude earthquake generated Pacific tsunami on Wednesday, killing an unknown number of people in American and Western Samoa and sending others fleeing for higher ground, officials said.
An official of the U.S. National Park Service said there had been deaths in American Samoa, but there was no word on how many. Similarly, a local police spokeswoman in nearby Western Samoa said the tsunami had killed an unknown number of people there.
"I can confirm there is damage, I can confirm there are deaths and I can confirm there are casualties," the police spokeswoman said by phone. "I cannot say any more at the moment."
A tsunami was observed at Apia, Samoa, and at Pago Pago, American Samoa, according to the West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, a branch of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
In Samoa, New Zealander Graeme Ansell said the beach village of Sau Sau Beach Fale was leveled.
"It was very quick. The whole village has been wiped out," Ansell told National Radio from a hill near Samoa's capital, Apia. "There's not a building standing. We've all clambered up hills, and one of our party has a broken leg. There will be people in a great lot of need 'round here."
The Pacific Western Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii issued a tsunami warning for New Zealand, American Samoa and other small Pacific islands.
American Samoa is a tiny U.S. territory that lies about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand. It is home to about 65,000 people. Samoa is a sovereign nation west of American Samoa.
In 2004, a 9.0 quake in the Indian Ocean generated a powerful tsunami that killed tens of thousands people in Asia.
‘We're alarmed’
Holly Bundock, spokeswoman for the National Park Service's Pacific West Region in Oakland, Calif., said "I would say we're alarmed," adding the service had heard from Mike Reynolds, superintendent of the National Park of American Samoa.
Reynolds told a Yellowstone dispatch operator that four tsunami waves, each 15 to 20 feet high, reaching half-mile to mile (1.6 miles) inland on island of Tutuila, where Pago Pago is.
"The National Park of American Samoa visitor center and its offices appear to be destroyed completely," Bundock said.
Reynolds reported deaths but had no confirmation of numbers, she said. "He's completely cut off from the rest of the island," Bundock said.
In the island nation of Western Samoa, some residents told Radio New Zealand they had felt a big jolt and were recommended by authorities to move to higher ground.
"Sea level readings indicate a tsunami was generated. It may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicenter and could also be a threat to more distant coasts," the Pacific warning center said.
Nathan Becker, an official at the center, told MSNBC a tsunami wave can dissipate or grow larger and go all the way across the ocean. "This is why we've issued a warning for a wide area," he said.
The epicenter of the quake was located 120 miles southwest of American Samoa, a remote Pacific island, the U.S. Geological Survey. The USGS earlier said the quake measured 7.9 magnitude. It struck at a depth of 11.2 miles.
‘Cars were seen floating’
The representative from American Samoa to the U.S. Congress, Eni Faleomavaega, told NBC News that quake hit between the North Marianas Islands and American Samoa, creating 10 to 15- foot waves in populated low-lying areas like Pago Pago Bay.
"Cars were seen floating," the congressman said of Pago Pago Bay.
He said there will likely need to be mass evacuations of low-lying areas and there will be requests for assistance from Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
He said he didn't have any reports on injuries.
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In Samoa, the powerful quake jolted people awake.
"It was pretty strong; it was long and lasted at least two minutes," one resident told local radio.
"It's the strongest I have felt, and we ran outside. You could see all the trees and houses were shaking," he said.
‘Everything dropped on the floor’
Sulili Dusi told New Zealand's National Radio that "everything dropped on the floor and we thought the house was going to go down as well. Thank God, it didn't." Along with neighbors, they fled to high ground.
She said the tsunami hit the south side of the island, and some "cars have been taken." She did not elaborate, but added "we just thank God no life has been taken yet."
Another resident, Dean Phillips, said the southern coast of Upolu island had been struck by the tsunami.
The police are sending everybody up to high ground," he said.
Local media said they had reports of some landslides in the Solosolo region of the main Samoan island of Upolu and damage to plantations in the countryside outside Apia.
There were no immediate reports of injury or serious damage from local emergency services, but people reported cracks in some homes and items tossed from shelves.
Hawaii monitors situation
Chevron Corp said it was monitoring the tsunami threat to Hawaii, where the company has a 54,000 barrel per day refinery near Honolulu.
"We are currently monitoring the situation via updates provided by local authorities," said Chevron spokesman Sean Comey."
Tesoro Corp did not immediately reply to messages about its 93,500 bpd refinery at Ewa Beach, also on the Hawaiian island of Oahu.
Both refineries provide jet fuel to commercial airlines and the U.S. military complex at Pearl Harbor as well motor fuels.
Tue Sep 29, 2009 12:51 pm