Saturday, March 12, 2011

Tsunami wreaks millions of dollars of damage on Californian harbours as giant waves smash U.S. west coast


A massive clean-up was underway today after a tsunami triggered by yesterday's Japan earthquake caused millions of dollars worth of damage along America's west coast.

In Crescent City, California eight-foot waves smashed boats and tore apart docks, virtually destroying the harbour.

Coast guards today resumed the desperate search for a man swept out to sea as tsunami waves battered California and Oregon.

In Hawaii, waves tore boats from their moorings and wrecked piers, but the damage was far less than scientists first feared when the tidal wave which devastated Japan began to spread across the Pacific Ocean.

Thousands were evacuated to higher ground in California and Oregon, and several people were plucked from the sea after being swept away.

Capsizing: All 35 of the boats left in Crescent City harbour sank or were damaged as eight-feet high waves battered the coast

Capsizing: All 35 of the boats left in Crescent City harbour sank or were damaged as eight-feet high waves battered the coast

Hawaii evacuated all low-lying areas late last night, amid fears waves could swamp the islands, but they returned to their homes earlier today.

Today the governor of Hawaii, Neil Abercrombie said: 'All of us had that feeling that Hawaii was just the most blessed place on the face of the Earth today.'

And as some people remained on the coast surfing or taking photographs, President Barack Obama warned them authorities were still taking the danger seriously.

 

He said: 'There hasn't been any major damage so far, but we are taking the situation very seriously. We are telling people if you are told to evacuate, do as you are told.'

Meanwhile Ecuador declared a state of national emergency as South America prepared for the waves to hit its coast next. 

Chile has upgraded its tsunami warning to alert and ordered a coastal evacuation, CNN reports. It now expects waves in its remote Easter Island territory to reach ten feet-high.

Badly hit: Boats crash into each other and sink at Crescent City, California, as a tsunami surge slams into the harbour, causing millions of dollars worth of damage

Badly hit: Boats crash into each other and sink at Crescent City, California, as a tsunami surge slams into the harbour, causing millions of dollars worth of damage

Sunk: Sailors on board a neighbouring boat watch as a sinking vessel approaches theirs in Santa Cruz harbour, California

Sunk: Sailors on board a neighbouring boat watch as a sinking vessel approaches theirs in Santa Cruz harbour, California

Three tsunami waves battered Crescent City in California, one reaching a record 8.1 feet. Four men who were taking photos were swept out to sea. Three were pulled to safety, but one is still missing, feared dead.

Lieutenant Todd Vorenkamp, a Coast Guard spokesman, said: 'We hope we find the gentleman. The shoreline here is a dangerous, treacherous place on a good day, and with a tsunami warning, it's exponentially worse.'

Later in the evening, however, the Coast uard announced that it had reluctantly suspended all search and rescue operations. Hope was fading for the man's survival. 

The waves caused millions of pounds worth of damage, smashing the 35 boats left in the harbour and tearing the docks apart, in scenes reminiscent of the 1964 tsunami which killed 11 people in the city.

Ted Scott, a retired mill worker, said: 'This is just devastating. I never thought I'd see this again.I watched the docks bust apart. It buckled like a graham cracker.'

Crescent City Councilwoman Kelly Schellong told Channel 10 the docks and harbour 'are pretty much completely destroyed.'



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