How big was the Tsunami that hit American Somoa (Samoa) ?
Radio DJ Lupe Lohmann was at work at a station in American Samoa when the tsunami struck. It was triggered by a strong quake in the South Pacific and has killed more than 100 people in Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga. She said she was on air when she felt tremors and put an alert out and told people to head up to the mountains. READ MORE: Deadly tsunami strikes in Pacific SEE ALSO * Amateur video of tsunami aftermath(03.30) * Eyewitness films tsunami wave(01.27) * Tsunami reporter: ‘People felt the quake'(01.38) * Tsunami damage in American Samoa(01.00) * Australia ‘will help tsunami victims'(00.32) Sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8283019.
A massive tsunami hurled by a powerful earthquake flattened Samoan villages and swept cars and people out to sea, killing at least 99 and leaving dozens missing Wednesday. The toll was expected to rise. Survivors fled the fast-churning water for higher ground on the South Pacific islands and remained huddled there hours after the quake, with a magnitude between 8.0 and 8.3, struck around dawn Tuesday. The quake was centered about 125 miles from Samoa, an island nation of 180,000 people located about halfway between New Zealand and Hawaii. It was about 120 miles from neighboring American Samoa, a U.S. territory that is home to 65,000 people. Four tsunami waves 15 to 20 feet high roared ashore on American Samoa, reaching up to a mile inland, Mike Reynolds, superintendent of the National Park of American Samoa, was quoted as saying by a parks service spokeswoman. The same day, western Indonesia was rocked by a strong underwater quake, briefly triggering a tsunami alert for countries along
Bloomberg reports that the tsunami may have killed up to 120 people: The toll in Samoa, where 47 people are confirmed dead, may rise to 100 as rescue teams reach isolated villages, Radio New Zealand reported, citing an estimate by the nation’s Disaster Management Office. At least 19 people are dead in American Samoa, according to territory director of homeland security, Mike Sala. Tonga is checking reports of 10 deaths. The New York Times reports that the earthquake struck around dawn: Many residents were preparing for work and getting their children ready for school. Officials said they expected heavy damage in the southern parts of Samoa and American Samoa, a United States territory with about 60,000 residents. Damaged telephone lines on both islands hampered efforts to count the casualties and assess the destruction from the earthquake. Sources: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/200
