By The Associated Press and Channel 2 News Staff

PAGO PAGO, American Samoa -- A tsunami swept into Pago Pago in American Samoa shortly after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.9 shook the Pacific area.

Officials say at least 14 people were killed.

The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami advisory for the coastal areas of California and Oregon from the California-Mexico border to the Oregon-Washington border.

The same message was sent for informational purposes only for coastal areas of Washington and British Columbia, and Alaska from the Oregon-Washington border to Attu, Alaska.

An advisory means that a tsunami capable of producing strong currents or waves dangerous to persons in or very near the water is imminent or expected.

The center says widespread inundation is not expected, and the hazardous period will occur early Wednesday morning.

Warning center official Guy Urban says a tsunami of 12 inches to 26 inches has been measured since the earthquake. Urban says it would be dangerous to people swimming or on beaches near the water.

Impact across Alaska is expected to be minimal.

Alaska geologists with the warning center say coastal communities will see some mild waves -- about a half-foot in Sitka and two inches in Yakutat -- at about 8 p.m. Tuesday.

It also means that there could be some strange water behavior, possibly odd currents, and people might notice the tide sequence appears to be off.

The tsunami that inudated American Samoa proved to have much more serious consequences.

Closer to the earthquake's epicenter, Fili Sagapolutele, who works at the Samoa News, says water flowed inland about 100 yards before receding, leaving cars stuck in mud.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu issued a tsunami warning for American Samoa and other areas of the Pacific, including New Zealand. A tsunami watch was posted elsewhere, including Hawaii and the Marshall Islands.

The temblor hit at 6:48 a.m. Tuesday midway between Samoa and American Samoa. In the Samoan capital, Apia, families fled their homes for higher ground amid severe shaking that lasted for up to three minutes.

Federal experts had originally said the earthquake was not expected to produce a tsunami along the coasts of California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia or Alaska.

The quake occurred at 10:48 a.m. PDT Tuesday in the Samoa Islands region.

Tsunami awareness is much higher on the West Coast since a 2004 quake off Indonesia spawned a surge that killed more than 200,000 people. Signs pointing out tsunami evacuation routes are now common in coastal California.

Link to story here.


~Sandy G.