By Michael Perry, September 30, 2009
SYDNEY (Reuters) - A series of tsunamis smashed into the Pacific island nations of American and Western Samoa killing possibly more than 100 people, destroying villages and injuring hundreds, officials said on Wednesday.
U.S. President Barack Obama declared American Samoa, a U.S. territory, a major disaster and ordered Federal aid to help recovery efforts, with a U.S. C-130 military transport aircraft due to leave Honolulu for the tiny South Pacific island.
New Zealand's government said there were serious concerns about the neighboring island nation of Tonga after a 4-meter (13-foot) wave hit its northern coast. Tongan officials said they feared five people had been killed.
A Pacific-wide tsunami warning was issued after an 8.0 magnitude undersea quake off American Samoa, with reports of a small tsunami reaching New Zealand and rising sea levels in several South Pacific island nations.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center canceled its Pacific-wide warning, but Japan's Meteorological Agency issued a local tsunami warning for its east coast, warning of a possible small tsunami.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center later issued an advisory that small tsunami waves had reached Hawaii, warning the waves could be dangerous to swimmers and boats.
The Indian Ocean tsunami on December 26, 2004, which killed about 230,000 people across 11 countries, was the worst on record.
BODIES BURIED IN SAND
Shortly after local radio tsunami warnings were issued in American and Western Samoa, waves started crashing into the capital of American Samoa, Pago Pago, and villages and resorts on the southern coasts of the tiny island nations, witnesses said.
"It's believed as of now, there could be a number close to 100 deaths," said Ausegalia Mulipola, assistant chief executive of Western Samoa's disaster management office.
"They are still continuing the searches for any missing bodies in the area," Mulipola told Reuters, adding the southern side of the country's main island Upolu was the worst hit.
"There have been reports of villages, where most of the houses have been run over by the sea," he said.
"Some areas have been flattened and the tsunami had brought a lot of sand onshore, so there have been reports the sand has covered some of the bodies. So we need specialized machines to search for bodies that are buried under the sand."
The owner of the Samoan resort Sea Breeze on the southside of Upolu island said they were almost washed away when the waves destroyed their resort.
"The second wave hit and came up through the floor, pushed out the back door and threw us outside," Wendy Booth told Fairfax Radio Network in Australia.
"Access to Pago Pago has been closed. Water had come up to the first floor. The radio station was evacuated, a lot of damage, structural damage to the steel and brick structure," Vaeafe told Australia's Sky Television from Pago Pago.
There were reports of looting in Pago Pago as people flocked into supermarkets to stockpile supplies. Fishing boats not thrown onto reefs by the tsunamis moved out to open sea for safety.
The tsunami caused waves of 1.5 meters above normal sea level off American Samoa, according to the Pacific Western Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii. But there were unconfirmed reports of waves taller than 4 meters.
Hundreds of people, including tourists, fled coastal homes and resorts to higher ground in both nations.
"As of right now, everybody is up in the high mountain ranges," said Senetenari Malele, announcer for local radio station Showers of Blessings in American Samoa.
Hundreds of people have been injured in the tsunamis.
"Injured people are being stabilized onsite by teams in the villages and will be brought over to the main hospital, but roads and communications are damaged," Western Samoa health chief Palanitina Toelupe told Reuters from the emergency ward of the country's main hospital in the capital Apia.
"So far, we are coping. We will definitely need help from overseas, but we will have to assess that later."
(Additional reporting by Adrian Bathgate and Mantik Kusjanto in Wellington, Rob Taylor and James Grubel in Canberra, Stacey Joyce in Washington, Bud Seba in Houston, Jim Christie in San Francisco, Peter Henderson in Los Angeles)
(Editing by Bill Tarrant)
