Posted by Sandy Hutchens
An undersea quake of 8.0 off the coast of American Samoa early this morning resulted in a Pacific-wide tsumani warning.
More than 120 people were killed in Samoa.
cbm’s partner, Loto Taumafai Society for People with Disabilities in Samoa sent this report:
- “The southern side of both Upolu and Savai’i has been devastated with more than one hundred dead and the death toll is expected to rise, as many people are still missing,” says Dan, a cbm staff worker.
- “All the beach resorts on that part of the island have been completely destroyed. A few tourists are included in the death toll.
- “cbm staff are okay in town and the students were sent home just before midday when the all clear was given.
- “This earthquake, the worst I have ever experienced, was 8.3 on the Ritcher scale and lasted almost 2 minutes. The tsunami struck within 10 minutes of the quake and people really did not have a chance to evacuate.”
Please pray for the people of Samoa, particularly cbm’s staff, volunteers and clients or you can give to our emergency fund.
October 1, 2009 – In western Indonesia, two earthquakes in two days have killed at least 1,100 people. Officials say that thousands of people may still be trapped under houses and buildings. The first quake of 7.6 magnitude hit the capital city Padang (population of nearly one million) on Wednesday. The second quake of 6.6 magnitude affected South Sumatra Thursday. cbm has not yet received reports from its partners in the region due to widespread electrical and power outages.
cbm is committed to improving the quality of life of persons with disabilities in the poorest countries of the world. Now in its 101st year, cbm has 1,000 projects in 100 developing countries. Last year, cbm helped over 16 million people worldwide.