Much Pacific ado over wave that never came
Source: Agencies |
March 1, 2010, Monday
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THE tsunami from Chile's devastating earthquake hit Japan's main islands and the shores of Russia yesterday, but the smaller-than-expected waves prompted the lifting of a Pacific-wide alert.
Hawaii and other Pacific islands were also spared.
Hundreds of thousands of people fled shores for higher ground after the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii alerted 53 nations and territories that a huge wave had been generated by Saturday's magnitude-8.8 quake.
After the center lifted its warning, some countries kept their own watches in place as a precaution.
In Japan, the biggest wave hit the northern island of Hokkaido. There were no immediate reports of damage from the 1.2-meter wave.
As it crossed the Pacific, the tsunami dealt populated areas - including Hawaii - only a glancing blow.
The tsunami raised fears Pacific nations could suffer from disastrous waves like those that killed 230,000 people around the Indian Ocean in December 2004, which happened with little-to-no warning.
Officials said the opposite occurred after the Chile quake: They overstated their predictions of the size of the waves and the threat.
"We expected the waves to be bigger in Hawaii, maybe about 50 percent bigger than they actually were," said Gerard Fryer, a geophysicist for the warning center. "We'll be looking at that."
Japan put its eastern coast on alert and ordered hundreds of thousands of residents in low-lying areas to seek higher ground as waves raced across the Pacific at hundreds of kilometers per hour.
But the tsunami passed gently by most locations.
False alarm
By the time the tsunami hit Hawaii - a full 16 hours after the quake - officials had already spent the morning blasting emergency sirens, blaring warnings from airplanes and ordering residents to higher ground.
It proved to be a false alarm.
Waves hit California, but barely registered.
In Tonga up to 50,000 people fled inland hours ahead of the tsunami but there were no indications of damage.
In Samoa thousands remained yesterday morning in the hills above the coasts on the main island of Upolu, but police said there were no reports of big waves.
Australia's Bureau of Meteorology canceled its tsunami warning last night.
"The main tsunami waves have now passed all Australian locations," it said.
Hawaii and other Pacific islands were also spared.
Hundreds of thousands of people fled shores for higher ground after the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii alerted 53 nations and territories that a huge wave had been generated by Saturday's magnitude-8.8 quake.
After the center lifted its warning, some countries kept their own watches in place as a precaution.
In Japan, the biggest wave hit the northern island of Hokkaido. There were no immediate reports of damage from the 1.2-meter wave.
As it crossed the Pacific, the tsunami dealt populated areas - including Hawaii - only a glancing blow.
The tsunami raised fears Pacific nations could suffer from disastrous waves like those that killed 230,000 people around the Indian Ocean in December 2004, which happened with little-to-no warning.
Officials said the opposite occurred after the Chile quake: They overstated their predictions of the size of the waves and the threat.
"We expected the waves to be bigger in Hawaii, maybe about 50 percent bigger than they actually were," said Gerard Fryer, a geophysicist for the warning center. "We'll be looking at that."
Japan put its eastern coast on alert and ordered hundreds of thousands of residents in low-lying areas to seek higher ground as waves raced across the Pacific at hundreds of kilometers per hour.
But the tsunami passed gently by most locations.
False alarm
By the time the tsunami hit Hawaii - a full 16 hours after the quake - officials had already spent the morning blasting emergency sirens, blaring warnings from airplanes and ordering residents to higher ground.
It proved to be a false alarm.
Waves hit California, but barely registered.
In Tonga up to 50,000 people fled inland hours ahead of the tsunami but there were no indications of damage.
In Samoa thousands remained yesterday morning in the hills above the coasts on the main island of Upolu, but police said there were no reports of big waves.
Australia's Bureau of Meteorology canceled its tsunami warning last night.
"The main tsunami waves have now passed all Australian locations," it said.
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