Yahoo news reported that the U.S. Geological Survey has said that a powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck in the South Pacific between Samoa and American Samoa. A tsunami alert has been issued for the region.
According to the website, the temor hit at 6:48 a.m. Tuesday (1748 GMT) midway between the two island groups.
In the Samoan capital of Apia, families fled their homes amid severe shaking that lasted for up to three minutes. Local media reported people were fleeing to higher ground.
The report also went on to state that the USGS said the quake struck 20 miles (35 kilometers) below the ocean floor and was 120 miles (190 kilometers) from American Samoa and 125 miles (200 kilometers) from Samoa.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a general alert for the South Pacific region, from American Samoa to New Zealand.
In another report by PTI news, a tsunami alert was issued today for the Pacific shores of Japan after a massive 8.0-magnitude earthquake struck thousands of kilometres away off the islands of Samoa and American Samoa.
Japan's meteorological agency warned that tsunami waves of up to 50 centimetres would reach the archipelago's Pacific shores.
The first waves were expected to hit the Ogasawara island chain 1,000 kilometres south of Tokyo at around 11:00 am (0730 IST), followed by Japan's main island about an hour later, it said.
"We issued a tsunami alert for the nation's entire coastline facing the Pacific. We urge people not to engage in activity in or near the sea as it is very dangerous," said Yasuo Sekita, who heads the agency's quake division.
"We urge people to be on full alert as fishing vessels have been carried away or capsized before," he told a nationally televised news conference.
I only knew about this because a relative called me from overseas to advise me to stay away from coastal areas and to ensure that I was not anywhere near Gurney Drive or Tanjung Bungah.
Those of you reading this, please alert your loved ones.
My internet connection is terribly slow so I cannot access many websites to see if this has been reported.
Dear reader, please take care. Life is short...God bless you and yours.
---------------------------------------------
Latest update from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre
.. THE TSUNAMI WATCH IS CANCELLED ...
THIS BULLETIN IS ISSUED AS ADVICE TO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES. ONLY
NATIONAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO MAKE
DECISIONS REGARDING THE OFFICIAL STATE OF ALERT IN THEIR AREA AND
ANY ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN IN RESPONSE.
AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS
ORIGIN TIME - 1016Z 30 SEP 2009
COORDINATES - 0.9 SOUTH 99.9 EAST
LOCATION - SOUTHERN SUMATRA INDONESIA
MAGNITUDE - 7.6
MEASUREMENTS OR REPORTS OF TSUNAMI WAVE ACTIVITY
GAUGE LOCATION LAT LON TIME AMPL PER
------------------- ----- ------ ----- --------------- -----
PADANG ID 0.9S 100.4E 1046Z 0.27M / 0.9FT 20MIN
LAT - LATITUDE (N-NORTH, S-SOUTH)
LON - LONGITUDE (E-EAST, W-WEST)
TIME - TIME OF THE MEASUREMENT (Z IS UTC IS GREENWICH TIME)
AMPL - TSUNAMI AMPLITUDE MEASURED RELATIVE TO NORMAL SEA LEVEL.
IT IS ...NOT... CREST-TO-TROUGH WAVE HEIGHT.
VALUES ARE GIVEN IN BOTH METERS(M) AND FEET(FT).
PER - PERIOD OF TIME IN MINUTES(MIN) FROM ONE WAVE TO THE NEXT.
EVALUATION
SEA LEVEL READINGS INDICATE THAT A SIGNIFICANT TSUNAMI WAS NOT
GENERATED. THEREFORE THE TSUNAMI WATCH ISSUED BY THIS CENTER
IS NOW CANCELLED.
THIS WILL BE THE FINAL BULLETIN ISSUED BY THE PACIFIC TSUNAMI
WARNING CENTER FOR THIS EVENT UNLESS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
BECOMES AVAILABLE.
THE JAPAN METEOROLOGICAL AGENCY MAY ISSUE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
FOR THIS EVENT. IN THE CASE OF CONFLICTING INFORMATION...THE
MORE CONSERVATIVE INFORMATION SHOULD BE USED FOR SAFETY.
Very funny announcements made on various airlines - supposedly true!
Occasionally, airline flight attendants make an effort to make the “in-flight safety lecture” a bit more entertaining. Here are some real examples that have been heard or reported:
“As we prepare for takeoff, please make sure your tray tables and seat backs are fully upright in their most uncomfortable position.”
“There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only 6 ways out of this airplane...”
“Your seat cushions can be used for floatation, and in the event of an emergency water landing, please take them with our compliments.”
“We do feature a smoking section on this flight; if you must smoke, contact a member of the flight crew and we will escort you to the wing of the airplane.”
“Smoking in the lavatories is prohibited. Any person caught smoking in the lavatories will be asked to leave the plane immediately.”
Pilot - “Folks, we have reached our cruising altitude now, so I am going to switch the seat belt sign off. Feel free to move about as you wish, but please stay inside the plane till we land… it’s a bit cold outside, and if you walk on the wings it affects the flight pattern.”
And, after landing: “Thank you for flying Delta Business Express. We hope you enjoyed giving us the business as much as we enjoyed taking you for a ride.”
As we waited just off the runway for another airliner to cross in front of us, some of the passengers were beginning to retrieve luggage from the overhead bins. The head attendant announced on the intercom, “This aircraft is equipped with a video surveillance system that monitors the cabin during taxiing. Any passengers not remaining in their seats until the aircraft comes to a full and complete stop at the gate will be strip-searched as they leave the aircraft.”
Once on a Southwest flight, the pilot said, “We’ve reached our cruising altitude now, and I’m turning off the seat belt sign. I’m switching to autopilot, too, so I can come back there and visit with all of you for the rest of the flight.”
As the plane landed and was coming to a stop at Washington National, a lone voice comes over the loudspeaker: “Whoa, big fella...WHOA..!”
“Should the cabin lose pressure, oxygen masks will drop from the overhead area. Please place the bag over your own mouth and nose before assisting children or adults acting like children.”
“As you exit the plane, please make sure to gather all of your belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses.”
“Last one off the plane must clean it.”
And from the pilot during his welcome message: “We are pleased to have some of the best flight attendants in the industry...Unfortunately none of them are on this flight...!”
Heard on Southwest Airlines just after a very hard landing in Salt Lake City: The flight attendant came on the intercom and said, “That was quite a bump and I know what ya’ll are thinking. I’m here to tell you it wasn’t the airline’s fault, it wasn’t the pilot’s fault, it wasn’t the flight attendant’s fault.....it was the asphalt!”
An airline pilot wrote that on this particular flight he had hammered his ship into the runway really hard. The airline had a policy which required the first officer to stand at the door while the passengers exited, give a smile, and a “Thanks for flying XYZ airline.” He said that in light of his bad landing, he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking that someone would have a smart comment. Finally everyone had gotten off except for this little old lady walking with a cane. She said, “Sonny, mind if I ask you a question?” “Why no Ma’am,” said the pilot, “What is it?” The little old lady said, “Did we land or were we shot down?”
Overheard on an American Airlines flight into Amarillo, Texas, on a particularly windy and bumpy day. During the final approach the Captain was really having to fight it. After an extremely hard landing, the Flight Attendant came on the PA and announced, “Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Amarillo. Please remain in your seats with your seatbelts fastened while the Captain taxis what’s left of our airplane to the gate!”
Another flight Attendant’s comment on a less than perfect landing: “We ask you to please remain seated as Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal.”
After a particularly rough landing during thunderstorms in Memphis, a flight attendant on a Northwest flight announced: “Please take care when opening the overhead compartments because, after a landing like that, sure as hell everything has shifted.”
From a Southwest Airlines employee.... “Welcome aboard Southwest Flight XXX, to YYY. To operate your seatbelt, insert the metal tab into the buckle, and pull tight. It works just like every other seatbelt, and if you don’t know how to operate one, you probably shouldn’t be out in public unsupervised. In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it over your face. If you have a small child traveling with you, secure your mask before assisting with theirs. If you are traveling with two small children, decide now which one you love more.”
Weather at our destination is 50 degrees with some broken clouds, but they’ll try to have them fixed before we arrive. Thank you, and remember, nobody loves you, or your money, more than Southwest Airlines.”
The old adage reminds us that when the going gets tough, the tough gets going. But is it that easy to persevere in the face of obstacles, to keep on trying, to keep on climbing that uphill path and never to give up if we believe in ourselves?
In my opinion, one should not simply surge ahead blindly without a second thought to consequences. Neither does it mean that we disregard good sense and/or the advice of those around us.
One thing is for sure - we have to stop and do a reality check and see if we are just going through the motion of perseverance without knowing if we are heading in the right direction. If not, it is a sure way of ascertaining that we are on the road to disaster!
I believe that we have to persevere with wisdom and to continuously keep on checking whether we are on the right track to achieving our goals or if we are moving further and further away.
At the same time, I believe some of us may feel that doing a stock check by stepping back now and then to assess our bearings can be quite intimidating indeed. And why so? Well, I reckon it is because it requires strength and honesty to do deep soul searching and strength to come to terms with whatever we discover about ourselves or about others.
Sometimes, it may be necessary to navigate in a new direction to ensure that we do not go to the land of nowhere.
So dear reader, wherever you are now, whatever circumstance you may be facing, may you persevere with wisdom and have the understanding to know what is the right and the next step to take.
Have a lovely day and may there be an enlightened path for you to take today!!!
