WORLD> Asia-Pacific
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WORLD> Asia-Pacific
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Quake triggers tsunami in the Samoas, killing 82
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-09-30 16:14 Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said an Australian woman has been confirmed killed in Samoa, three other Australians have been hospitalized and six other Australians remain unaccounted for after the tsunami. Mase Akapo, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in American Samoa, reported at least 19 people killed in four different villages on the main island of Tutuila. Officials reported at least 50 injured.
Reynolds, the park superintendent, said he had been able to locate only 20 percent of the park's 40 to 50 employees and volunteers. He spoke to park service officials from Pago Pago Harbor and reported that the visitor center and offices were destroyed, according to Holly Bundock, a spokeswoman for the National Park Service. Residents in both Samoa and American Samoa reported being shaken awake by the quake early Tuesday, which lasted two to three minutes and was centered about 20 miles (32 kilometers) below the ocean floor. It was followed by at least three large aftershocks of at least 5.6 magnitude. The quake came Tuesday morning for the Samoas, which lie just east of the international dateline. For Asia-Pacific countries on the other side of the line, it was already Wednesday. The Samoan capital was virtually deserted with schools and businesses closed. Hours after the waves struck, fresh sirens rang out with another tsunami alert and panicked residents headed for higher ground again, although there was no indication of a new quake. Eni Faleomavaega, who represents American Samoa as a non-voting delegate in the US House, said he had talked to people by telephone who said that Pago Pago - just a few feet above sea level - was flattened and several hundred people's homes were destroyed. The dominant industry in American Samoa - tuna canneries - was also affected. Chicken of the Sea's tuna packing plant in American Samoa was forced to close although the facility wasn't damaged, the San Diego-based company said. The effects of the tsunami could be felt thousands of miles away. Japan's Meteorological Agency said "very weak" tsunami waves were registered off the island of Hachijojima about 10 hours after the quake. There were no reports of injuries or damage in Japan, which is about 4,700 miles (7,600 kilometers) northwest of Samoa. US officials said strong currents and dangerous waves were forecast from California to Washington state. No major flooding was expected, however. In Los Angeles, lifeguards said they will clear beaches at about 8 pm in response to an advisory for possible dangerous currents. While the earthquake and tsunami were big, they were not on the same scale of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, said Brian Atwater of the US Geological Survey in Seattle. That tsunami killed more than 230,000 in a dozen countries across Asia. The 2004 quake was at least 10 times stronger than the measurements being reported for Tuesday's quake, Atwater said.
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