Earthquake hits Tonga during Pacific-wide tsunami warning drill
(AP)
Updated: 2006-05-17 10:05 A magnitude 5.8 earthquake
Wednesday morning disrupted a simulated tsunami warning drill on the remote
South Pacific nation of Tonga, an official said.
The quake rattled Tonga early Wednesday at the same time that emergency
authorities on the country's islands were broadcasting simulated alerts as part
of a Pacific-wide simulation to test a warning system that spans the world's
largest ocean.
The quake, the latest in a string of aftershocks to hit the country since a
powerful 7.8 quake on May 4, caused no damage or injury.
Tonga's National Disaster Office deputy director Mali'u Takai said people in
the Ha'apai island group near the epicenter of Wednesday's quake felt the ground
move as officials were broadcasting mock tsunami warnings, sparking a rash of
phone calls to emergency services.
The National Disaster Office was "bombarded with questions" as the quake hit
in the midst of the tsunami test, Takai said.
He added that authorities should have done more to make clear to residents
that the warnings, broadcast on local radio stations, were part of a test.
"We should have warned the people about it, because some ... don't realize
it's an exercise," he added.
Nobody was evacuated as part of the Tonga's nationwide tsunami warning test.
The country was one of more than two dozen around the Pacific taking part in the
Pacific-wide drill.
There were no immediate reports of villagers fleeing from their homes on the
nation's many low-lying coral islets.
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