quakewatch

Tsunami Victim's Last Words:"Mom Please"

2009-10-04T13:52:00.000-07:00

A mother recounts the details of her daughter's death in Tuesday's tsunami. The 6 year old was swept out to sea when she slipped from her mother's grasp in the village of Leone, American Samoa...

Quake Mudslides Wipe Out Indonesian Villages

2009-10-04T13:49:00.000-07:00

Mountains of mud and debris have obliterated a handful of Indonesian villages. So far, the government confirms more than 700 people are dead and three thousand listed as missing...

Samoans Return to See Tsunami Devastation

2009-10-04T13:44:00.000-07:00

Family members of those who lost loved ones in the tsunami that hit American Samoa are returning to the island. As AP's Haven Daley reports, some are helping with the clean-up, while others are having to make funeral arrangements...

Indonesian earthquakes death toll expected to hit thousands as rescuers desperately dig through rubble for survivors

2009-10-04T12:42:00.000-07:00

The epicentres of all three quakes are shown on this graphic

This graphic charts first the Samoan tsunami, then the first of the Indonesian earthquakes. The second Indonesian earthquake struck in the early hours of this morning

--Disasters across Pacific Ring of Fire as first a tsunami hits Samoa, then two earthquakes rock Indonesia
--Truckloads of dead being carted off Samoan beaches after tsunami
--Missing British boy, 2, believed dead after tsunami struck Samoa
--Samoan tsunami kills at least 149; Indonesian earthquakes kill 'up to 1,000'
Thousands of people are feared to have died after two powerful earthquakes rocked Indonesia.
Rescuers were frantically searching for survivors in the rubble caused by the two quakes in the province of Sumatra today - as, far to the west on the Pacific islands of Samoa, stunned residents were battling heat and floods to pull the bloated bodies of tsunami victims from the water.
The devastating quakes came just hours after the powerful tsunami smashed into the Pacific islands of Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga.....

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Sister of Tsunami Victim Goes Home

2009-10-04T12:38:00.000-07:00

Hawaii resident and American Samoa native Leata Solia talks to the AP while waiting for the first commercial flight to Pago Pago since Tuesday's devastating tsunami killed more than 150 people, including her sister...

American Samoans pulling together after quake, tsunami

2009-10-04T12:25:00.000-07:00

Residents of close-knit American Samoa are pulling together to help Pago Pago recover from Tuesday's devastating earthquake and tsunami, one of them told CNN on Wednesday."That's how we operate over here in American Samoa-basically everyone is related," said iReporter Maneafaiga T. Lagafuaina, 29, of the town of Lu'uuli. "And I know, at this time, especially with what American Samoa has experienced, we have pulled together as one."Families and friends from both ends of the island have found ways to volunteer and to help out with the village of Pago with the disaster that they're going through right now," said Lagafuaina, who runs the computer system for the Pacific territory's legislature....

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Officials:"Indonesia quake toll could soar"

2009-10-04T12:18:00.000-07:00

JAKARTA, Indonesia-Another strong earthquake rocked Indonesia early Thursday as the Southeast Asian nation was reeling from an earlier jolt that killed more than 200 people.The 6.8 magnitude quake Thursday hit southern Sumatra at 8:52 a.m. local time (0152 GMT), the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said. Wednesday's earlier quake was 7.6 magnitude.At least 236 people are dead and more than 500 injured, the Indonesian Social Ministry's Crisis Center said Thursday. It said it had little information on the missing and feared the death toll would climb into the thousands.The second quake was on a smaller scale than the first, said meteorology official Fauzi, who uses only one name.There were no damage reports yet.Indonesian Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari expected "the casualties and the damage of this earthquake to be bigger than the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake, given the intensity and the spread of the damage."The magnitude-6.3 Yogyakarta quake in central Java in May 2006 killed more than 5,000 people, triggered fears of an eruption of a nearby volcano and caused significant damage to a 9th century Prambanan temple.Thousands may be trapped by collapsed buildings and houses, Rustam Pakaya, the head of the Health Ministry's crisis center, told CNN on Wednesday....

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119 Dead, Villages 'Wiped Out' in Samoa Tsunami

2009-10-04T11:58:00.000-07:00

Sept. 29: A main road in the downtown area of Fagatogo, American Samoa is flooded after towering tsunami waves swept ashore.(AP)

APIA, Samoa-Police in green reflective vests searched a ghastly landscape of mud-strewn streets, pulverized homes and bodies scattered in a swamp Wednesday as dazed survivors emerged from the muck and mire of an earthquake and tsunami that killed 119 in the South Pacific.Military transports flew medical personnel, food, water and medicine to the islands of Samoa and American Samoa, which were devastated by the wall of water triggered by Tuesday morning's undersea earthquake. One cargo plane from New Zealand brought in a temporary morgue and a body identification team — with officials expecting the death toll to rise as more areas are searched...

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New Zealand Tsunami Survivors Go Home...

2009-10-03T23:30:00.000-07:00

Samoa survivor recalls tsunami

2009-10-03T23:28:00.001-07:00

Pacific tsunami: Aid efforts begin in Samoa

2009-10-02T14:04:00.000-07:00

Sydney, Australia – Sulili Dusi was jolted awake just before 7 a.m. local time Tuesday by a powerful earthquake that shook the walls of her house on Samoa's main island, Upolu. She and her family ran outside to find the trees trembling, too, she told Radio New Zealand. They fled to higher ground before a series of tidal waves roared ashore. Other residents of Samoa, neighboring American Samoa, and Tonga were not so fortunate.More than 100 people, including foreign tourists, are thought to have died in the South Pacific after the magnitude 8.3 offshore quake triggered a tsunami, sending walls of water crashing into nearby islands. At least 30 are confirmed dead in American Samoa, where workers at a fish-canning factory in the capital, Pago Pago, say they had only three minutes' warning before the devastating waves struck....
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"WE'VE LOST EVERYTHING":Heart Wrenching Stories from survivors of devastating Tsunami

2009-10-02T13:53:00.000-07:00

Up to 200 Dead in Indonesia Earthquake

2009-10-02T13:39:00.000-07:00

Sept. 30: A map shows the epicenter of the powerful earthquake near the island of Sumatra.(USGS)

A powerful earthquake rocked western Indonesia Wednesday, trapping thousands under collapsed buildings — including two hospitals — and triggering landslides. Priyadi Kardono, a spokesman for the national disaster agency, told Reuters that up to 200 people are dead on the island of Sumatra.The magnitude 7.6 quake struck at 5:15 p.m. local time, just off the coast of Padang city the U.S. Geological Survey said. It was along the same fault line that spawned the massive 2004 Asian tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries.A tsunami warning for countries along the Indian Ocean was issued, and panicked residents fled to higher ground fearing giant waves. The warning was lifted about an hour later.....

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Raw Video: Tsunami Waves Sweep Across Samoas

2009-10-02T13:23:00.000-07:00

SUMATRA SHAKEN:Buildings Collapse in Indonesia Earthquake

2009-10-02T13:20:00.001-07:00

KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA

2009-10-02T12:34:00.000-07:00

4.8 Mb - KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA
Preliminary Earthquake Report
Magnitude
4.8 Mb
Date-Time
30 Sep 2009 05:08:33 UTC
30 Sep 2009 13:08:33 near epicenter
29 Sep 2009 23:08:33 standard time in your timezone
Location
4.967N 126.892E
Depth
54 km
Distances
228 km (142 miles) SE (124 degrees) of General Santos, Mindanao, Philippines
273 km (170 miles) SSE (149 degrees) of Davao, Mindanao, Philippines
380 km (236 miles) S (170 degrees) of Hinatuan, Mindanao, Philippines
884 km (549 miles) WSW (253 degrees) of KOROR, Palau
Location Uncertainty
Horizontal: 14.6 km; Vertical 23.1 km
Parameters
Nph = 23; Dmin = 274.3 km; Rmss = 1.48 seconds; Gp = 75°M-type = Mb; Version = 7
Event ID
US 2009mebf

4.9 Mb - KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA
Preliminary Earthquake Report
Magnitude
4.9 Mb
Date-Time
30 Sep 2009 02:21:31 UTC
30 Sep 2009 10:21:31 near epicenter
29 Sep 2009 20:21:31 standard time in your timezone
Location
4.990N 127.062E
Depth
35 km
Distances
243 km (151 miles) ESE (121 degrees) of General Santos, Mindanao, Philippines
281 km (175 miles) SE (146 degrees) of Davao, Mindanao, Philippines
381 km (237 miles) SSE (167 degrees) of Hinatuan, Mindanao, Philippines
865 km (537 miles) WSW (253 degrees) of KOROR, Palau
Location Uncertainty
Horizontal: 12.6 km; Vertical
Parameters
Nph = 17; Dmin = 282.8 km; Rmss = 1.42 seconds; Gp = 158°M-type = Mb; Version = 6
Event ID
US 2009mea2

4.9 Mb - KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA
Preliminary Earthquake Report
Magnitude
4.9 Mb
Date-Time
30 Sep 2009 01:46:51 UTC
30 Sep 2009 09:46:51 near epicenter
29 Sep 2009 19:46:51 standard time in your timezone
Location
4.528N 127.527E
Depth
51 km
Distances
314 km (195 miles) SE (124 degrees) of General Santos, Mindanao, Philippines
353 km (219 miles) SE (143 degrees) of Davao, Mindanao, Philippines
415 km (258 miles) N (2 degrees) of Ternate, Moluccas, Indonesia
834 km (518 miles) WSW (248 degrees) of KOROR, Palau
Location Uncertainty
Horizontal: ; Vertical
Parameters
Nph = 32; Dmin = 354.0 km; Rmss = ; Gp = 111°M-type = Mb; Version = 6
Event ID
US 2009meay

5.6 Mb - KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA
Preliminary Earthquake Report
Magnitude
5.6 Mb
Date-Time
30 Sep 2009 01:39:42 UTC
30 Sep 2009 09:39:42 near epicenter
29 Sep 2009 19:39:42 standard time in your timezone
Location
4.914N 126.727E
Depth
72 km
Distances
217 km (135 miles) SE (128 degrees) of General Santos, Mindanao, Philippines
270 km (168 miles) SSE (153 degrees) of Davao, Mindanao, Philippines
376 km (234 miles) SE (133 degrees) of Cotabato, Mindanao, Philippines
903 km (561 miles) WSW (253 degrees) of KOROR, Palau
Location Uncertainty
Horizontal: 6.8 km; Vertical 9.0 km
Parameters
Nph = 61; Dmin = 270.5 km; Rmss = 1.20 seconds; Gp = 75°M-type = Mb; Version = 6
Event ID
US 2009meav ***This event supersedes event PT09273000.
For updates, maps, and technical information, see: Event Page or USGS Earthquake Hazards Program
National Earthquake Information Center--U.S. Geological Survey

http://neic.usgs.gov//

Samoa tsunami lesson: Early warning system too slow

2009-10-02T12:19:00.000-07:00

Sydney – International aid has begun arriving on the Samoan islands, after a tsunami Tuesday killed at least 150 people and destroyed dozens of coastal villages.Even as relief teams confront the aftermath of the tsunami – which threw successive walls of water up to 650 feet inland and was followed by another earthquake Wednesday – the disaster is drawing attention to how much warning residents could have gotten ahead of time.This week's events in the South Pacific demonstrate that early-warning systems are not fail-safe and education is as important as technology, seismologists and disaster management experts say."People assume that if they have an early-warning system, their problems are solved," says James Goff, director of the Australian Tsunami Research Centre, based at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. "But it's only one of a suite of ways of being aware what's going on. What's really needed is education about the natural indicators. If you live by the coast and there's a very large earthquake, or if you see the water receding very quickly and going much lower than low tide, you need to move uphill"....
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SEARCH for SURVIVORS:Death Toll Rising after American Samoan Tsunami

2009-10-02T12:12:00.000-07:00

US, Australia lead Samoa relief mission

2009-10-02T11:54:00.000-07:00

Australia, New Zealand and the United States led immediate pledges of assistance to the Samoan islands after a devastating 8.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami which killed dozens.US President Barack Obama declared a major disaster in the remote Pacific territory American Samoa, where at least 14 people were killed when a massive wall of water swept over the US-administered island early Tuesday local time.Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said Australia stood ready to assist the neighbouring island of Samoa, which gained independence from New Zealand in 1962, and where dozens more people died, including a number of tourists.
"We see our friends in Samoa as part of our Pacific family and therefore, when natural disaster strikes, Australia has always stood ready to assist them," Rudd said....

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"MY HANDS ARE SHAKING":Amateur video captures tsunami's second wave washing ashore

2009-10-02T11:52:00.000-07:00

Small tsunami hit Japan after Samoa quake

2009-10-02T11:36:00.000-07:00

Small tsunami waves caused by a powerful earthquake that hit Samoa in the Pacific Ocean reached Japan on Wednesday, officials said.Japan's Meteorological Agency said tsunami waves, which it described as "very weak," were registered off the island of Hachijojima about 10 hours after the quake. The agency earlier issued a warning of a possible tsunami all along the eastern coast and said larger waves of up to about 1.6 feet (50 centimeters) could follow.There were no reports of injuries or damage in Japan....

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Waves big,but no damage reported on NorCal coast

2009-10-02T11:34:00.000-07:00

Officials in the San Francisco Bay Area have reported a quiet night after a tsunami advisory was issued Tuesday for the coastal areas of California and Oregon.The National Weather Service issued the advisory after a Pacific Ocean earthquake earlier Tuesday.Though forecasters expected the highest surges to hit the region around 9:30 p.m., a harbor patrol official in San Mateo County's Pillar Point Harbor reported no noticeable rise in the water....

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DEADLY TSUNAMI:Video Footage of the damage to American Samoa

2009-10-02T11:04:00.000-07:00

Amateur Video Captures Devastating Tsunami Rolling Ashore in Samoa

2009-10-02T11:00:00.000-07:00

LA County beaches reopen following tsunami fears

2009-10-02T10:56:00.000-07:00

Lifeguards have given the all-clear for visitors to return to Los Angeles County beaches following a magnitude-8 earthquake in the Pacific Ocean near Samoa that prompted a tsunami advisory.
Los Angeles County lifeguard Capt. Terry Harvey said Wednesday morning that crews found no dangerous currents or other hazards during their night patrols.The National Weather Service allowed its tsunami advisory to expire early Wednesday....
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