Wow... this is a big one!!
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/index.php

Magnitude 8.0 (Great)
Date-Time Wednesday, May 3, 2006 at 15:26:35 (UTC)
= Coordinated Universal Time
Thursday, May 4, 2006 at 4:26:35 AM
= local time at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location 20.035°S, 174.227°W
Depth 16.1 km (10.0 miles) (poorly constrained)
Region TONGA
Distances 155 km (95 miles) S of Neiafu, Tonga
160 km (100 miles) NE of NUKU'ALOFA, Tonga
455 km (280 miles) S of Hihifo, Tonga
2145 km (1340 miles) NNE of Auckland, New Zealand

Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 7.9 km (4.9 miles); depth +/- 32.2 km (20.0 miles)
Parameters Nst=161, Nph=161, Dmin=725.7 km, Rmss=0.9 sec, Gp= 29°,
M-type=moment magnitude (Mw), Version=6
Source USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

Event ID usmgas

TSUNAMI BULLETIN NUMBER 001
PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER
0543 AM HST 03 MAY 2006

TO - CIVIL DEFENSE IN THE STATE OF HAWAII

SUBJECT - TSUNAMI WATCH BULLETIN

A TSUNAMI WATCH IS ISSUED FOR THE STATE OF HAWAII EFFECTIVE AT
0543 AM HST.

AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS

ORIGIN TIME - 0527 AM HST 03 MAY 2006
COORDINATES - 19.9 SOUTH 174.2 WEST
LOCATION - TONGA ISLANDS
MAGNITUDE - 8.1 MOMENT

EVALUATION

BASED ON ALL AVAILABLE DATA A TSUNAMI MAY HAVE BEEN GENERATED BY
THIS EARTHQUAKE THAT COULD BE DESTRUCTIVE ON COASTAL AREAS EVEN
FAR FROM THE EPICENTER. AN INVESTIGATION IS UNDERWAY TO DETERMINE
IF THERE IS A TSUNAMI THREAT TO HAWAII.

IF TSUNAMI WAVES IMPACT HAWAII THE ESTIMATED EARLIEST ARRIVAL OF
THE FIRST TSUNAMI WAVE IS

1200 MIDNIGHT HST 00 0000

BULLETINS WILL BE ISSUED HOURLY OR SOONER AS CONDITIONS WARRANT.


-------------------------------




TSUNAMI BULLETIN NUMBER 001
PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER/NOAA/NWS
ISSUED AT 1542Z 03 MAY 2006

THIS BULLETIN IS FOR ALL AREAS OF THE PACIFIC BASIN EXCEPT
ALASKA - BRITISH COLUMBIA - WASHINGTON - OREGON - CALIFORNIA.

... A TSUNAMI WARNING AND WATCH ARE IN EFFECT ...

A TSUNAMI WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR

FIJI / NEW ZEALAND

FOR ALL OTHER PACIFIC AREAS, THIS MESSAGE IS AN ADVISORY ONLY.

AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS

ORIGIN TIME - 1527Z 03 MAY 2006
COORDINATES - 19.9 SOUTH 174.2 WEST
LOCATION - TONGA ISLANDS
MAGNITUDE - 8.1

EVALUATION

IT IS NOT KNOWN THAT A TSUNAMI WAS GENERATED. THIS WARNING IS
BASED ONLY ON THE EARTHQUAKE EVALUATION. AN EARTHQUAKE OF THIS
SIZE HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GENERATE A DESTRUCTIVE TSUNAMI THAT CAN
STRIKE COASTLINES NEAR THE EPICENTER WITHIN MINUTES AND MORE
DISTANT COASTLINES WITHIN HOURS. AUTHORITIES SHOULD TAKE
APPROPRIATE ACTION IN RESPONSE TO THIS POSSIBILITY. THIS CENTER
WILL MONITOR SEA LEVEL DATA FROM GAUGES NEAR THE EARTHQUAKE TO
DETERMINE IF A TSUNAMI WAS GENERATED AND ESTIMATE THE SEVERITY OF
THE THREAT.

ESTIMATED INITIAL TSUNAMI WAVE ARRIVAL TIMES. ACTUAL ARRIVAL TIMES
MAY DIFFER AND THE INITIAL WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST. THE TIME
BETWEEN SUCCESSIVE TSUNAMI WAVES CAN BE FIVE MINUTES TO ONE HOUR.

LOCATION COORDINATES ARRIVAL TIME
-------------------------------- ------------ ------------
FIJI SUVA 18.1S 178.4E 1713Z 03 MAY
NEW ZEALAND GISBORNE 38.1S 176.4E 1821Z 03 MAY
EAST CAPE 36.2S 175.1E 1854Z 03 MAY
LYTTELTON 43.6S 172.7E 2005Z 03 MAY
NEW PLYMOUTH 39.1S 174.1E 2027Z 03 MAY
DUNEDIN 45.9S 170.5E 2040Z 03 MAY
MILFORD SOUND 44.6S 167.9E 2108Z 03 MAY
WESTPORT 41.8S 171.6E 2108Z 03 MAY
BLUFF 46.6S 168.3E 2154Z 03 MAY

BULLETINS WILL BE ISSUED HOURLY OR SOONER IF CONDITIONS WARRANT.
THE TSUNAMI WARNING AND WATCH WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL
FURTHER NOTICE.

THE WEST COAST/ALASKA TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER WILL ISSUE BULLETINS
FOR ALASKA - BRITISH COLUMBIA - WASHINGTON - OREGON - CALIFORNIA.





We need to pray!!!!!!!!!!!

thank you for your timely report, roxy.

we are in the end of all things. and it will get worse.

yes, prayer. now. and ever.

Thought this link might be useful here as we watch to see what takes place. I forget who orginally shared this link, but I put it in my favorites...

http://visz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert.php?lang=eng

It's 4:40 am in Figi right now... if there is a wave it would hit around 5:13am

I believe you're right kiddo


http://earthquake.usgs.gov/


Jeep

I just saw this on the news. I believe they are issuing a tsunami warning for New Zealand as well.

A very large quake indeed and there will more to come.

SEA LEVEL READINGS INDICATE A TSUNAMI WAS GENERATED. IT MAY HAVE
BEEN DESTRUCTIVE ALONG COASTS NEAR THE EARTHQUAKE EPICENTER. FOR
THOSE AREAS - WHEN NO MAJOR WAVES ARE OBSERVED FOR TWO HOURS
AFTER THE ESTIMATED TIME OF ARRIVAL OR DAMAGING WAVES HAVE NOT
OCCURRED FOR AT LEAST TWO HOURS THEN LOCAL AUTHORITIES CAN ASSUME
THE THREAT IS PASSED. DANGER TO BOATS AND COASTAL STRUCTURES CAN
CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS DUE TO RAPID CURRENTS. AS LOCAL
CONDITIONS CAN CAUSE A WIDE VARIATION IN TSUNAMI WAVE ACTION THE
ALL CLEAR DETERMINATION MUST BE MADE BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

NO TSUNAMI THREAT EXISTS FOR OTHER COASTAL AREAS IN THE PACIFIC
ALTHOUGH SOME OTHER AREAS MAY EXPERIENCE SMALL SEA LEVEL CHANGES.
THE TSUNAMI WARNING IS CANCELLED.

THIS WILL BE THE FINAL BULLETIN ISSUED FOR THIS EVENT UNLESS
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE.

THE WEST COAST/ALASKA TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER WILL ISSUE BULLETINS
FOR ALASKA - BRITISH COLUMBIA - WASHINGTON - OREGON - CALIFORNIA.


Oh God have mercy...

Here we go again! Birth Pains are get more intense!

Valerie

Messiahiscoming

Thank yo for sharing Roxygal, and I am praying for those in the path of these things.

Just been on Yahoo New Zealand and the latest news report:

http://au.news.yahoo.com/060503/19/yth5.html

WELLINGTON (AFP) - A massive earthquake with a magnitude of 8.0 rocked Tonga in the Pacific, however damage was minimal and initial tsunami warnings for the South Pacific were withdrawn within two hours.

The US Geological Survey said a "great" quake struck at 4:26 am local time (1526 GMT) in the middle of the islands that make up Tonga.

However there were few reports of injury or damage in Tonga, although a hotel guest hurt his leg when he jumped from a third-floor window.

"He was the only tourist injured. He jumped from his room, maybe he was afraid," said William Vea, the night receptionist at the Pacific Royale Hotel.

Other guests walked out of hotels in the South Pacific island nation popular with tourists and waited patiently in the streets until they were allowed back to their rooms.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center initially called on New Zealand and Fiji to take immediate action against a possible giant wave caused by the quake.

But two hours later it scaled back the warning and said the earthquake was only expected to generate half-metre (two-foot) swells around New Zealand.

"It looks like there was a half-meter tsunami at Niue and Pago Pago, near the epicenter of the quake, but this was a small local event and the possibility of a larger tsunami heading to New Zealand and Fiji is now starting to look unlikely," said Pacific Tsunami Warning Center oceanograher Nathan Becker.

The epicenter was 155 kilometers (95 miles) south of Neiafu island and 160 km (100 miles) northeast of Nuku'Alofa, the main island of Tonga, the USGS said.

The quake was recorded 16 kilometers (10 miles) below the Earth's surface, a relatively shallow distance which increases the likelihood of a tsunami.

New Zealand's Geological and Nuclear Sciences department said the earthquake was felt in Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, more than 2,200 kilometres from Tonga.

The quake was the largest recorded by the USGS since a 8.6 temblor off the Indonesian island of Sumatra in March 2005.

Oh thank God!!! I didn't know how large it was!!! Thanks for the update Sarah!

The northwest tip of South America has had a great deal of activity the last few days, I think perhaps the ring of fire is acting up, and we'll see more activity around the perimeter of this in the coming weeks, I think we are seeing alot of plate shifting in the pacific, albeit I am not sure what the extent of it will be.

California is getting alot of swarm activity, and it looks to be far more than the usual. I wonder how much of the Chandler effect or lack thereof has played a role.

I guess we'll see


God bless
Jeep

My prayers, Roxygal, I love you my sister.
Signet

I love you too!

Roxy, do you think that hundreds of beached whales in wherever it was was a sign that something was going to happen?
If you care about the 'nature' of earthquakes, if this earthquake does not cause a tsunami this earthquake did not move the earth. A tsunami is caused by the forced upheaval of a great body of water. If the earthquake does not cause a tsunami, like this recent tsunami, then, I feel that there is a different reason for the earthquake. An earthquake of that magnitude is greater than the magnitudes of the San Francisco earthquake and all of these other fault line quakes; and they moved the earth. We have earthquake warning systems around the world just like the storm warning systems. Was there a warning put out immediately after the beached whale incident? That is the most probable reason for the beached whales; I don't believe that they would swim around for years in their little cliques and plan this get together for a mass suicide or they just wanted to scare the humans or something like that. But, I hear the tsunami warning system failed in Tonga . . . maybe that is where the beached whales were. . .

gregg,

That is a great thought....suprisingly stupid of me not to have even thought about it.

We had earthquakes all the time in California. I watched my twin palm trees on either side of the yard actually point their tops at teach other and almost touch as the ground rolled underneath. I remember my father and brothers and I were working in the garden one afternoon and dad was on his knees pulling weeds and my brother Sam was standing up and had a metal post driver over his head poised to over a tomato post when one hit....they just fell over like little dominoes! Quite funny.

But I have also walked through entire towns wiht no house standing....just roofs on the ground. Only the center of the hit was without blemish!

You learn to watch the animals....you even learn to feel them before they happen if you care to. When one hit in alabama in the middle of the night, I woke up a minute of two before hand and woke my husband....he thought I was crazy (they just don't happen here) until it hit.

The animals were the real alarm. Land animals. Horses would run around in circles and dogs bark and so on...

Why not water creatures if it is going to occur in the water? How silly not to have thought of that before. I think I will pay more attention to the animal sites....

leia