Pacific tsunami strikes

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A tsunami triggered by a strong quake in the South Pacific has killed more than 100 people in several islands. At least 77 people were reported dead in Samoa, more than 25 in American Samoa and at least six in Tonga. Residents and tourists fled to higher ground as whole villages were destroyed. Boats were swept inland and cars and people out to sea. The World’s Jeb Sharp has the latest.

• BBC coverage: Photos
• Radio DJ on air when tsunami hit

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JEB SHARP:  In other news, President Obama has declared a state of emergency in American Samoa, the US Pacific island territory and neighboring Samoa were hit by a tsunami yesterday.  Authorities say more than a hundred people were killed.  Samoans who lived through the tragedy are just starting to pick up the pieces.  Here are some of their voices.

SPEAKER:  Debris everywhere you know, wrecked cars on the side of the road, boats inland, also the side of the road.  Shops have been torn down.  It’s basically a mess.

SPEAKER #2:  The whole village has been wiped out.  We’re around the tropical [INDISCERNIBLE] I guess the whole southeast coast has been wiped out.  You know, there’s not a building standing.  We’ll claim it up [INDISCERNIBLE] and one of our party, one of them’s got a broken leg.  We don’t know about, the other party’s okay.  But we just need help.  There will be people in quite a lot of need around here.  It’s [INDISCERNIBLE], it’s just [INDISCERNIBLE].  It was very good and it [INDISCERNIBLE].

SPEAKER #3:  One lady rang up the radio station and said that she didn’t think of anything.  She went to prepare food and all she looked up and she saw the wave.  She ran to grab her young ones but on her way she was too late, the wave came.  What, she lost her kids and she only managed to grab onto the tree branch.

SHARP:  Residents of the Samoan islands describing yesterday’s tsunami and it’s aftermath.  Another undersea earthquake hit today, off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.  This time it was the quake itself that killed people.  It triggered a mudslide and caused some buildings to collapse.  Indonesian officials say the death toll in Sumatra may exceed the one in Samoa.

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