Saturday, February 27, 2010
Tsunami hits N.Zealand, Australia; no deaths
9:49 PM | 
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WELLINGTON: Waves up to 1.5 metres (five feet) high rammed into New Zealand Sunday as a tsunami generated by a huge earthquake in Chile intensified, but there were no reports of serious damage.
New Zealand's entire east coast was at risk with walls of water up to three metres (10 feet) expected to hit the Chatham Islands and Banks Peninsula, near the main South Island city of Christchurch, officials said.
In the South Pacific island nation of Tonga, residents made their way to higher points inland, with memories still fresh of a tsunami in September that also hit Samoa and American Samoa, leaving more than 180 people dead.
The first wave of 20 centimetres arrived at the Chathams soon after 7:00 am (1800 GMT Saturday) and within three hours the waves had risen to 1.5 metres, Rana Solomon of the Chatham Islands Council said.
"It is expected that the greatest wave heights will occur between six and 12 hours after the initial arrivals," the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management said in a statement.
However, officials were hopeful the tsunami would not cause severe damage when they hit mainland New Zealand throughout the day.
Meanwhile, the Australian officials recorded the first effects Sunday of a wide-ranging tsunami generated by the Chile earthquake, reporting a rise in sea levels but no major waves.
"At the moment we're really in the first few minutes of it," said Alasdair Hainsworth, the Bureau of Meteorology's acting assistant director of services. "It's sea levels rising by just a couple of centimetres at the moment."
New Zealand's entire east coast was at risk with walls of water up to three metres (10 feet) expected to hit the Chatham Islands and Banks Peninsula, near the main South Island city of Christchurch, officials said.
In the South Pacific island nation of Tonga, residents made their way to higher points inland, with memories still fresh of a tsunami in September that also hit Samoa and American Samoa, leaving more than 180 people dead.
The first wave of 20 centimetres arrived at the Chathams soon after 7:00 am (1800 GMT Saturday) and within three hours the waves had risen to 1.5 metres, Rana Solomon of the Chatham Islands Council said.
"It is expected that the greatest wave heights will occur between six and 12 hours after the initial arrivals," the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management said in a statement.
However, officials were hopeful the tsunami would not cause severe damage when they hit mainland New Zealand throughout the day.
Meanwhile, the Australian officials recorded the first effects Sunday of a wide-ranging tsunami generated by the Chile earthquake, reporting a rise in sea levels but no major waves.
"At the moment we're really in the first few minutes of it," said Alasdair Hainsworth, the Bureau of Meteorology's acting assistant director of services. "It's sea levels rising by just a couple of centimetres at the moment."
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