AT LEAST 100 people are understood to have died and many more been injured in the Pacific island nations of Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga after the undersea earthquake this week that led to tsunami waves up to 6m (19½ft) high.
Officials in Samoa, the worst-hit location, said 63 people were known to have been killed as the churning waters flattened buildings and swept people and cars out to sea, although this figure was expected to rise significantly with many more remote locations still being searched.
At least 30 people died in American Samoa, the governor of the US-administered island said, warning that more bodies were likely to be found.
In the capital, Pago Pago, streets and fields were filled with debris, mud, overturned cars and several boats.
In Washington, US president Barack Obama declared a disaster situation and made federal funds available to the territory’s 65,000 people.
Officials in Tonga, to the south-west of the Samoas, confirmed at least six dead after a 4m (13ft) wave hit the northern edge of the archipelago. – (Guardian service)