TSUNAMI

A top military official in Chile admitted Tuesday his team hesitated in providing information about a possible tsunami following the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that hit the nation during pre-dawn hours Saturday.

A massive earthquake and tsunamis killed 350 people in one Chilean coastal town, doubling the total death toll on Sunday as the government tried to get aid to hungry survivors and halt looting.

Tsunami waves of up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) hit far-flung Pacific regions from the Russian far east and Japan to New Zealand's Chatham Islands on Sunday after a powerful earthquake struck Chile, but there were no reports of injuries or serious damage.

Tesoro Corp , a petroleum refiner and operator of the 94,000 bpd refinery in Kapolei, Hawaii, said on Saturday it is monitoring the tsunami alerts prompted by the massive earthquake in Chile and will take the steps deemed necessary.

Hawaiian authorities sounded alarms across the island on early Saturday morning, and are evacuating 100,000 residents and tourists.

An 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile that so far has killed 147 people triggered a tsunami warning across Hawaii, Russia, Japan and Australia Saturday morning.

One of the most powerful earthquakes in decades battered Chile on Saturday, killing at least 147 people, knocking down buildings and triggering a tsunami that rolled menacingly across the Pacific.

President Barack Obama warned U.S. citizens in the West Coast to prepare for the possible tsunami that is forecasted to hit Hawaii at 1.19 pm PST.

The Civil Defense in Hawaii has urged all residents to prepare for a possible tsunami on Saturday, following a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake off Chile which sent waves across the Pacific Ocean.

Hawaii announced a tsunami warning on Saturday , after a massive earthquake off Chile sent waves across the Pacific Ocean.

Hawaii prepared to start evacuations ahead of a tsunami generated by a massive earthquake in Chile, a civil defence official on the U.S. island said on Saturday.

A tsunami was generated on Saturday that could cause damage along the coasts of all the Hawaiian islands, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

A massive magnitude-8.8 earthquake struck south-central Chile early on Saturday, killing at least 85 people, knocking down buildings, homes and hospitals, and triggering a tsunami.

A magnitude 7.3 quake hit Japan's southern island of Okinawa early on Saturday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported, and Japan's weather agency issued a tsunami warning for up to 2 meters.

A second earthquake has hit Haiti, shaking buildings and sending frightened people running into the streets.

A major earthquake hit the impoverished country of Haiti on Tuesday, collapsing buildings in the capital Port-au-Prince and burying residents under rubble, a Reuters reporter in the city said.

Prior to the tsunami, a long standing, low level conflict existed within Aceh. Aji, a young Indonesian Red Cross volunteer at the time, recalls how he used to evacuate at least one corpse every day, victims of the fighting. After 29 years of conflict, that meant a lot of bodies. Instability raged across turbulent Aceh.

A strong earthquake struck off Indonesia's Tanimbar Islands in the east of the country on Saturday, but there was no tsunami alert issued and no reports of immediate damage, the country's meteorology agency said.

Thousands of saffron-robed Thai monks chanted and prayed for victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami on Saturday as Asia marked the fifth anniversary of one of history's worst natural disasters.

Suvadee Sukkasem is still searching for her son who vanished when the Indian Ocean tsunami turned this tropical paradise into a mass grave for thousands of Thais and foreign vacationers nearly five years ago.

A powerful earthquake of magnitude 6.8 struck northeast of the South Pacific island nation of Tonga on Tuesday, the United States Geological Survey said, but a destructive tsunami was not expected.