Magnitude 8.0 Quake off New ZealandFollow

Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 11:26:35 AM (EDT) - Eastern Daylight

On the bright side: if there are a lot of casualties, most of them will be new zealanders anyway, loss of real people will be insignificant.

Editted to add: New Zealanders and sheep.

Edited, Wed May 3 12:50:20 2006 by Fratelli

Fiji is closest to the epicentre and would be expected to receive any tidal wave around two hours after the earthquake.

The U.S.
National Weather Service warned that a tsunami could strike Fiji as soon as 1:13 p.m. EDT and New Zealand by 2:21 p.m. EDT

Not all quakes generate tsunamis, obviously. Do we even know what kind of quake this was?

Tsunami Warning Cancelled in South Pacific

WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Concerns about a tsunami in the aftermath of a powerful South Pacific quake have eased. An official in New Zealand reports ocean-monitoring devices haven't detected any signs of a tsunami. And the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center is canceling its tsunami warning.

A magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck early Thursday near the South Pacific nation of Tonga, and a tsunami warning was issued, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

A warning said it was possible a tsunami could hit Fiji and New Zealand. Police in Fiji and Tonga said there were no signs of impact from a tsunami. A New Zealand police officer said east coast authorities were on high alert for possible tsunami.

A police officer in Tonga's capital, Nuku'alofa, said there were no immediate reports of damage or a tsunami.

Another officer in Neiafu, 180 miles to the north, said the quake was felt for about 90 seconds.

"It was strong but not long,'' duty constable Salesi Baongo said.

Asked whether the tsunami warning had been received, Baongo said, "No, we haven't heard about it.''

Mary Fonua, a publisher in Nuku'alofa, said it was the most powerful quake she had felt in 27 years in Tonga.

"It was rocking and rolling the floor was shaking, the whole family stood in the doorway and we heard crockery breaking in the kitchen and books fell from the shelves,'' she said.

"It's very dark and the power went off during the quake ... staff are reporting big flashes as the electricity grid went down during the shake and lines were broken,'' she added.

"It felt very close but we haven't heard a tsunami warning'' in the capital, she said.

The temblor, classified by the USGS as a "great'' quake, struck 95 miles south of Neiafu, Tonga, and 1,340 miles north-northeast of Auckland, New Zealand. It occurred 20 miles beneath the sea floor.

The Tsunami Warning Center's instruments detected that there could be small tsunamis with half-meter waves in the areas close to the earthquake, Hirshorn said.

"We're not observing much of a tsunami,'' he said. "Strictly speaking, it's not very devastating.''

A tsunami advisory was issued for Hawaii, but the warning center said the earthquake, based on historical records, was not sufficient to generate a tsunami damaging to the Pacific coasts of the United States and Canada, and Alaska. Some areas may experience small sea-level changes.

The earthquake struck early Thursday 95 miles south of Neiafu, Tonga, and 1,340 miles north-northeast of Auckland, New Zealand. It occurred 20 miles beneath the sea floor.

The Tsunami just hit! Here's a picture.