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TSUNAMI WARNING LIFTED AFTER BIG QUAKE
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 04 - 05 - 2006

A MASSIVE EARTHQUAKE MEASURING 7.8 ON THE RICHTER SCALE WAS RECORDED IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC, OFF THE COAST
OF TONGA, ON THURSDAY MORNING NEW ZEALAND TIME (1527 GMT WEDNESDAY), DPA REPORTED.
THE PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTRE (PTWC) ISSUED A TSUNAMI ALERT
FOR FIJI AND NEW ZEALAND AFTER TIDE GAUGES IN PAGO PAGO, SAMOA, AND
NIUE SHOWED A SMALL RISE IN SEA LEVELS, BUT THIS WAS SUBSEQUENTLY
WITHDRAWN.
PEOPLE RAN INTO THE STREETS OF TONGA'S CAPITAL NUKUALOFA AS
BUILDINGS SHOOK DURING THE QUAKE WHICH LASTED ABOUT FOUR MINUTES, A
POLICE OFFICER TOLD RADIO NEW ZEALAND.
EARLY REPORTS SAID THERE HAD BEEN SOME MINOR DAMAGE BUT NO REPORTS
OF INJURY.
SOME PEOPLE FLED THEIR HOMES IN GISBORNE, ON THE EAST COAST OF NEW
ZEALAND'S NORTH ISLAND, WHERE CIVIL DEFENCE WORKERS WENT ON STANDBY
AFTER A TSUNAMI WAS REPORTED LIKELY TO HIT AT 6:20 AM LOCAL TIME.
BUT THE WARNING WAS LIFTED SHORTLY BEFORE THEN, AT 6 AM, AND
RADIO NEW ZEALAND REPEATEDLY BROADCAST ANNOUNCEMENTS THAT THE SCARE
WAS OVER.
THE QUAKE WAS ORIGINALLY ESTIMATED TO BE OF 8.1 MAGNITUDE, A SIZE
NEW ZEALAND'S INSTITUTE OF GEOLOGICAL AND NUCLEAR SCIENCES (GNS) SAID
THE WORLD EXPERIENCED ONLY ONCE A YEAR ON AVERAGE.
IT WAS SUBSEQUENTLY DOWNGRADED TO 7.8, MAKING IT ONE OF ABOUT 18
QUAKES RANGING FROM 7 - 7.9 RECORDED ANNUALLY.
GNS SAID THE QUAKE WAS CENTRED 170 KILOMETRES NORTH-EAST OF
NUKUALOFA, AT A DEPTH OF 38 KILOMETRES BENEATH THE SURFACE.
IT WAS FELT IN AUCKLAND 3,700 KILOMETRES AWAY.
PAULA CHIPMAN, A US TOURIST FROM SEATTLE VACATIONING IN TONGA,
SAID SHE FELT THE GROUND SHAKE BUT THAT NO WARNINGS WERE ISSUED IN
THE HOTEL SHE WAS STAYING.
"THERE'S STUFF ON THE FLOOR, STUFF UPSTAIRS THAT HAS COME OUT OF
THE ROOMS...(BUT) EVERYTHING LOOKS PRETTY MUCH INTACT," SHE TOLD CNN.
CHIPMAN ALSO SAID POWER WAS OUT IN THE HOTEL.
A TSUNAMI IN THE INDIAN OCEAN ON DECEMBER 26, 2004, KILLED MORE
THAN 220,000 PEOPLE IN THE REGION. AN EARLY WARNING SYSTEM DEVELOPED
AFTER THE DISASTER, WHICH INCLUDES NEW SEISMIC SENSORS IN THE PACIFIC
AND INDIAN OCEANS, IS STILL IN THE PROCESS OF BEING IMPLEMENTED TO
HELP ALERT PEOPLE TO THE POSSIBILITY OF A TSUNAMI DEVELOPING.
AUTHORITIES EXPECTED THE SYSTEM TO BE FULLY IMPLEMENTED BY 2008.
NO TSUNAMI WARNINGS OR WATCHES WERE ISSUED FOR THE US AS A RESULT
OF THE EARTHQUAKE, THE WEST COAST AND ALASKA TSUNAMI WARNING CENTRE
SAID.


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