[LJRead]

Well, there was a Chinese, Wang, who brought in two huge  Sikorsky Soviet helicopters just after the Soviet breakup, and there was something there to  with hiding them out in lieu of payment, but they are long gone.  The Niua plantations largely will be  intact so food will be no problem, just the emergency supplies for any hurt.

You bring up a good point, Sailor, in that there is no real good way to handle emergencies in a hurry.  If you live on one of the off lying islands, you make do, though there are a lot of small boats around that will get you to the main islands, and there, really ill people are often taken on to New Zealand or Australia.  No Medivac here!

Meanwhile, it is so derned nice out, hard to imagine suffering going on at  a time like this.

Thanks guys for the good words.

P.S. Just read your post, Woodboats, and that is indeed sad.  I doubt if there are any better people at responding quickly to emergencies wrought on others than the good Kiwis.  Maybe you understand what being isolated means, because you certainly are that.

Radio says (yes radio talks!) that Tongan officials are on their way to Samoa to see the needs, meanwhile the Naval vessel is indeed on the way some where, probably the Niuas. 

[woodboats]

Sorry to hear that Tonga did suffer some casualties.
Unfortunately, it is usually the day or so after when the real scale of the disaster starts coming out.
Your people have had it pretty hard lately, with this and the ferry sinking.

[LJRead]

The toll goes up, though only about nine  deaths in the Niuas, some still missing.  Bank manager told me today that their office up there was destroyed and it does look pretty washed out from photos seen.

Terrible price paid by Samoa. Understand the French have already stocked a ship to come over from Tahiti, some supplies to go to Niuas - French are another country always with a willing hand.

Finally heard from the acting Prime Minister on radio last evening that they finally flew the gov. plane up there so they could talk with those on the ground (no landing strip though), and thus the report of deaths and damage.Plane is an old WWII B29, I think.

Fund raising all day on the radio for the people of the Niuas- they have become number one priority of this nation.  Very sad how things are both in the Niuas and in the Samoas.  Some New Zealanders and Australians also affected there.  Beaches are a mess and some beach resorts have heavy damage.

Life goes on - as it must.

[1Blackwolf1]

  Any updates as to current situation?  Your country continues to be in my thoughts and hopes for a better tomorrow.  Will.

[clamp]

I got thrown out of bed in Philippines years ago.

     I was strangely on my own that evening so no one was hurt.

   Damn strange experience, I looked out of the hotel door expecting to see others but no --nothing --no mention of it.

       Could have been a poltergeist then I suppose.

[LJRead]

Not much news now.  The head of Tonga's Red Cross was on the radio today complaining that people had taken down the Rid Cross building in Niuatopotapu and there were a lot of supplies inside that have been distributed.  Thing was, they moved the building to higher ground because they were afraid of another tsunami.

The incident I mentioned that was related by Malia's cousin Va'inga is interesting in that with the first warning, everyone on the island lined up along the waterfront awaiting the tsunami.  They saw the big waves, then it went away.  My daughter, being the wit she is, said the tsunami took a look at the faces and decided to go away (funny faces).  Had it been a biggy, there would have been far few people there in Lifuka in the Ha'apai group.  Seems like a bit of PR work needs to be done to get people clued in to the dangers.

I guess they do have an air strip in Niuatoputapu because the Princess, in her position as "Princess Regent" (the King is overseas) went there to have a look.  There are about a thousand people there and many of their homes were destroyed.

I've slept through a lot of earthquakes, so maybe the others in clamp's case, were sawing logs.  I don't even bother to do anything when one hits as they are so common and I know the house is pretty strong since I built it.  The last big one I could hear water sloshing about in the large water tank below.

Worked on the rickshaw all day today, building the battery boxes and the wooden "fuel tank" that will house some of the electronics.  Nice day here.

[clamp]

Since the tsunami --(the big one) there is a web page to check on when and where a earthquake is.   I was amazed to see that  over 100 per day is possible and quakes from that same area was daily.

       The tsunami is a different quake movement from that of a normal one which is a shake horizontaly. A tsunami quake is a collapse or an up and down movement, if this is at sea it makes a bloody big wave.