8 seconds ago 2009-10-03T06:22:29-07:00
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A powerful 8.0 magnitude earthquake in the Pacific off the Samoa islands region generated a tsunami, U.S. government agencies said on Tuesday.
Sea level readings indicated a tsunami was generated, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, a branch of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said.
The agency earlier issued a tsunami warning for New Zealand, American Samoa and other small Pacific islands.
The West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center said that a tsunami had been observed at Apia, Western Samoa, and at Pago Pago, American Samoa. The waves at Pago Pago were 5.1 feet above normal sea level.
In Western Samoa, some residents told Radio New Zealand they had felt a big jolt and were recommended by authorities to move to higher ground.
An official from American Samoa told Fox television he had felt shaking for up to five minutes.
Police in Tonga said they had not received any word of the quake or tsunami warning yet.
The epicenter of the quake was located 120 miles southwest of American Samoa, a remote Pacific island, the U.S. Geological Survey. The USGS earlier said the quake measured 7.9 magnitude. It struck at a depth of 11.2 miles.
"Sea level readings indicate a tsunami was generated. It may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicenter and could also be a threat to more distant coasts," the Pacific warning center said.
(Reporting by Stacey Joyce, editing by Frances Kerry)
