11:35 AM |
Tsunami hits French Polynesia
PAPEETE, French Polynesia - Tsunami waves up to two metres high struck parts of French Polynesia early today, and other Pacific nations were evacuating coastlines ahead of a tsunami generated by a devastating earthquake in Chile.
Residents in Asia-Pacific coastal areas were being warned that tsunamis can consist of several waves and they should remain vigilant.
Monique Richeton, mayor of Rikitea, French Polynesia, said the first wave struck Gambier early Sunday at less than one meter and no damage was reported.
In Samoa, where 183 people died in a tsunami in September, police said most people were moved out of low-lying areas by 6 a.m. local. The waves are expected there about 8 a.m.
"The evacuation is going pretty well, with most people in higher ground already," on the main island of Upolu, police spokesman Tavita Moeono said.
In Fiji, people in coastal towns and villages have been evacuated. Police and emergency services are on alert for waves of between 0.6 - 2.3 metres on the northern and eastern islands of the archipelago about 9:20 a.m. local time Sunday.
Disaster management office duty officer Anthony Blake said coastal evacuations had taken place on Vanua Levu, Fiji's second biggest island, and in the Lau and Lomaiviti island groups.
In the Cook Islands, police sirens, text messages and local broadcasts alerted people during the late night and early morning to move inland to high ground and away from the coast.
Police in the capital, Avarua, said coastal evacuations from villages and tourist resorts had gone smoothly, but they were concerned a high tide at the main island of Rarotonga could see any tsunami wave surge further inland.
- AP
Tsunami: No damage reported on Pacific islands
Blaring tsunami warning sirens woke up Pacific island residents early this morning resulting in mass evacuations, but most warnings have been cancelled with no reported damage.
In the Cook Islands, police sirens and radio broadcasts at 3am drove locals and tourists away from the coast to higher ground.
Rarotonga's New Zealand High Commission first secretary Julie Affleck said police scanned beaches and went door-to-door warning people of an emergency.
More than half the island's population had been evacuated, she said.
But there had been no noticeable surges and warnings were cancelled at 10am.
"We're really happy because we've had high cyclone in our waters for the last four weeks. It's been a very busy time for us," Ms Affleck said.
Disaster management officials in Fiji said they had been warned to expect waves of as high as 2.3m to hit the northern and eastern islands of the archipelago and the nearby Tonga islands.
But warnings had been cancelled during the morning and "no significant events" occurred, the office said.
In Tonga, the New Zealand High Commission said there had been four small tsunami waves in Vava'u but no reported damage.
Hawaii had surges as high as two metres but there have been no reports of widespread damage.
But in French Polynesia, tsunami waves up to two meters high swept ashore, damaging parts of the coast.
The United States' Pacific Tsunami Warning Center cancelled its tsunami warning for most Pacific countries except for Japan and Russia.
"We dodged a bullet," said Gerard Fryer, a geophysicist for the warning centre. He said there was a possibility that the tsunami would gain strength again as it headed to Japan.
The United States' Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre has cancelled warnings for New Zealand, Australia, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Samoa, Niue, Tokelau, Fiji, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Hawaii, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Kiribati, Kermandec Island, American Samoa, Jarvis Island, Wallis-Futuna, Palmyra Island, Johnston Island, Marshall Island, Midway Island, Wake Island, Howland-Baker, Solomon Island, Nauru, Kosrae, Papua New Guinea, Pohnpei, Chuuk, Marcus Island, Indonesia, Northern Marianas, Guam, Yap, Belau, Philippines, Chinese Taipei, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Antarctica, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Pitcairn, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico.
By Michael Dickinson----------------------------------------
pacific islands media association
pima.nius@gmail.com
aotearoa, new zealand
----------------------------------------
The pima.nius googlegroup is a facility for discussion and distributing information. Content sent by this googlegroup are forwarded from various networks and media publications.
DISCLAIMER: These emails are unedited and discussions made through this googlegroup are unmoderated. Announcements made through this googlegroup do not constitute endorsement for the organisations, individuals or opinions featured. Please check the integrity of organisations and individuals before exchanging personal information with them.
- - - - - - - - -
comment here:
http://groups.google.com/group/pima-nius/topics?hl=en
send an email comment here:
pima-nius@googlegroups.com
unsubscribe:
pima-nius+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
more options
http://groups.google.com/group/pima-nius?hl=en?hl=en
- - - - - - - - -
0 comments:
Post a Comment