National Park map:
Posted on 09/29/2009 12:39:37 PM PDT by J. Worthington
Ping
Roma says the quake lasted over five minutes then Apia was evacuated by police and people sent to higher ground inland.
Local reports say the wave that hit in Apia was 0.7 of a metre while the second, larger wave in Pago Pago was measured at 1.7 metres.
ONE News camerman Rico Tupai, who is in Apia, Samoa, says high waves have damaged houses and villages.
There are unconfirmed reports of people being killed or injured as the tsunami appears to have come up from the south side of the island.
Emergency evacuation procedures are in place and church bells are ringing as people head to higher ground.
This article seems to indicate the tsunamis are even smaller than reported:
“The temblor generated three separate tsunami waves that are spreading, the largest of which measures 5.1 feet from sea level height, said Vindell Hsu, a geophysicist with the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Ewa Beach, Hawaii. Preliminary data had originally reported a larger tsunami.”
Looks like this may not be that bad after all compared to the 15-20 foot reports earlier.
I remember you as txflake. I had no idea you had changed your name. This does sound pretty bad, however at least in the pacific they have a warning system in place, so hopefully the death toll will not be too bad(assuming they have high ground to run to).
No tsunami threat to Australia (Source: ONE News)
ONE NewsAustralia
A tsunami caused by a powerful earthquake off Samoa will not threaten Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology and Geoscience Australia say.
I realize it could be bad, I am sympathetic towards all who may be in the Tsunami’s path, and for those already hit on Samoa, but Dirtboy jumped you when you were making an offhand remark and then kept it up, and that kind of upset me. I am glad all is well now and I apologize if I jumped in after a truce. We should concentrate on the victims of this natural event.
The larger wave at Pago Pago is only 3 feet.
Tiny, tiny.
Not sure if this report is correct or the other ones are with the bigger waves.
Granted, 3 feet of a tsunami is not like 3 feet of an ocean wave lapping at your feet on the beach.
txflake? You changed your FReep name...Now I’ll know it’s you!
Bay of Plenty residents have been told to move to higher ground immediately due to a potential 1m high tsunami – stemming from the tsunami that struck American Samoa this morning. It is expected to hit the shoreline at approximately 9:45am NZT.
I can’t be the only one hurling everyday since 1-20-09?
Thank God Austrailia’s safe.
Hawaii, too.
Holly Bundock, spokeswoman for the National Park Service’s Pacific West Region in Oakland California, said: “I would say we’re alarmed,” adding that 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 15ft-20ft high, reaching half-mile to a mile inland on island of Tutuila, where Pago Pago is.
“The National Park of American Samoa visitor centre and its offices appear to be destroyed completely,” Bundock said. Mr Reynolds reported deaths but had no confirmation of numbers, she said. “He’s completely cut off from the rest of the island,” Bundock said.
Prayers for your family & friends, and all people affected by this.
That one sounds bad. It may take awhile to sort this out....hope it isn’t really that bad.
National Park map:
Interesting piece from a radio website about being 15 feet under water etc....seems likely the wave estimates are a bit high, but possibly 15-20 feet may be accurate still for at least a few locations:
n undersea earthquake about 125 miles from Samoa has caused a tsunami that washed over nearby American Samoa. The Pago Harbor area was hard hit, according to a report posted by Kirk Harnack to his Facebook page.
The earthquake hit Sept. 29th at 6:48 a.m. local time (1:48 p.m. EDT) and the wave reached Pago Pago around 8:13 a.m. local time (3:13 p.m. EDT).
Harnack, director of international business development for Telos Systems, is vice president of engineering for South Seas Broadcasting, which owns KKHJ-FM and WVUV-FM in Pago Pago, American Samoa. According to a report posted by Harnack from Joey Cummings, manager of the stations, the Pago Harbor area was hit with a wave 20 feet to 40 feet in height. AC power is out to the stations and is believed to be out at the transmitter site.
“All cars in our building’s parking lot are washed out to the harbor. KKHJ-FM and WVUV-FM - our offices, too - are on the 2nd floor of the Pago Plaza building. They’re OK. But the ground-mounted generator (landlord provided) is non-operable now,” Cummings wrote.
“Reports of cars, ‘aiga busses’ (private busses) and school busses being washed out to the harbor or to sea. Surely dozens missing and presumed drowned. Dozens if not hundreds of businesses surround Pago Harbor — many of them are now gone,” Cummings continued.
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Cummings said that the stations were able to activate the EAS system and to get two warnings out to the public before the tsunami hit.
Larry Fuss, president of South Seas Broadcasting, relayed a similar message to Harnack.
“We were able to air the tsunami warning several times before it hit. Power went off shortly thereafter. The generator for the studio is in the parking lot, which is under 15 feet of water, so we’re now off air until we figure out an alternate power source,” Fuss wrote. “Our staff is all accounted for. Many of our automobiles are not.”
* Report says tsunami completely destroys village on American Samoa, casualties unknown: http://news.bnonews.com/upti 2 minutes ago
If you look at the map, Pago Pago is right at the head of a long, funnel-shaped bay. That could well have focused a smaller tsunami. As it was, they probably had about 10-15 minutes of warning.
Hopefully death tolls will be in the hundreds......low hundreds.
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