Seven missing as new quakes hit Solomons

Seven fishermen are missing as the Solomon Islands continues to be rocked by earthquakes.

The Solomon Star newspaper said this morning that the seven, from Viru in the Western Province, had gone fishing and have not been seen since the quake and tsunami.

Provincial Police Commander Inspector Hilton Hoala said it was still too early to decide the fate of the seven men.

"It is not right to draw any conclusions at this stage," he said.

Landslides and a tsunami have destroyed the homes of about one-third of the population of one of the Solomon Islands, but lives were spared as residents fled quickly to higher ground.

The largest quake - magnitude 7.2 - happened about 9.30am local time on Monday and caused the tsunami to hit the coast a short time later.

Since then, at least a dozen other quakes greater than magnitude 5.0 have rocked the earthquake-prone region. The strongest, a magnitude 6.9 aftershock, hit the nation's western region again late on Tuesday night and generated a tsunami about an 2.5cm high, but there were no immediate reports of fresh damage or injury.

From the air, extensive damage could be seen on a remote western island after a 7.2-magnitude temblor triggered the landslides in the Pacific Solomon Islands on Monday, said disaster management office director Loti Yates.

Only one minor injury has been reported some 30 hours after the biggest in a series of quakes churned a tsunami wave that was up to 3 metres high as it plowed into the coast, officials said.

However, more than 1000 people have been affected after some 200 houses were destroyed on Rendova, an island about 300km from the capital Honiara. Only 3600 people live on Rendova.

Two New Zealanders were evacuated unharmed from the affected area, a spokesman for the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry said. A total of 53 Kiwis were known to be in the Solomon Islands but there were no concerns for their safety.

Julian Maaka, of the Solomon Islands' National Disaster Management Office, said there had been only one minor injury, and no reported deaths.

The person with minor injuries had been hurt while escaping the waves. "They were running around, trying to get away from the waves."

Photographs taken from police helicopters on Tuesday show debris lining the foreshore and damaged houses on the coasts of Rendova and Tetepare, as well as deep scars on hills and cliffs caused by landslides.

Yates said some 200 households were taking shelter in emergency centres on Rendova.

Hillsides crashed down and the tsunami inundated homes on Monday, but residents' memories of earlier disasters probably helped prevent any casualties, officials and residents said.

In April 2007, an 8.1 temblor unleashed a tsunami that killed more than 50 people. A quake-churned tsunami that killed more than 200 on nearby Samoa and Tonga in September was another reminder, locals said.

"People are very sensitive, as a quake conjures up memories, and people immediately begin going to higher ground," said police commissioner Peter Marshall.

"The fact it was daylight, the isolated nature of the wave and that the landslides were in a relatively sparsely populated area" also helped, he said.

In the provincial capital Gizo, dive shop owner Danny Kennedy said the general rule is that "if there's anything more than 20 seconds of shaking or any sea water recedes, head for the hills."

A police boat patrolled on Tuesday to check the coastline, where many homes are at sea level, making them vulnerable to tsunamis, National Disaster Management Office spokesman Julian Makaa said. No casualties had been reported so far, he said.

One village, Retavo, home to about 20 people, was reportedly completely inundated by a wall of sea water up to 3 metres high, but Makaa said no deaths or injuries had been reported there.

Emergency food, water and tarpaulins were being shipped in.

The Solomon Islands lie on the Ring of Fire - an arc of earthquake and volcanic zones that stretches around the Pacific Rim and where about 90 percent of the world's quakes occur.

AID OPERATION UNDERWAY

Aid agencies were already rallying to help the affected communities.

A Unicef team was travelling by canoe from nearby Gizo to the affected area to assess the damage and humanitarian needs.

The team had been in Gizo since the 2007 tsunami, helping with reconstruction of schools. There is also a team in Rendova helping rebuild schools affected by the earlier wave.

The 2007 tsunami affected more than 37,000 people, left 54 dead and caused major damage to thousands of homes, more than 200 schools, two hospitals and several health facilities.

Unicef Pacific representative Isiye Ndombi said that, even without deaths, the latest tsunami would still have an impact on the community.

"Psychological trauma for children and adults experiencing two tsunamis in such a short period will be significant."

- with agencies

- © Fairfax NZ News