Local Samoans were desperately trying to reach family members in their devastated homeland yesterday.
Saga Moi of Vista said she was relieved when she heard that her relatives survived the earthquake and tsunami relatively unscathed.
“My parents are OK,” Moi said. “My sister's in Pago Pago; she's OK.”
Moi said her parents, who are in their 70s and 80s, live in a remote village and were safer than people who live in coastal areas.
“Pago Pago was the village hit the hardest,” Moi said yesterday at First Samoan Congregational Christian Church of Mesa Margarita in Oceanside. “Everything there is damaged really bad.”
The 2000 U.S. Census estimated that 4,500 Samoans live in the county, with distinct communities in Oceanside, southeast San Diego and the South Bay. Oceanside has one of the largest populations of Samoans outside the islands.
Moi said communications were down but that her nephew, Young Kim in Northern California, managed to reach his father yesterday. Kim said his father, Mike Kim, described Pago Pago's waterfront as a ruin.
“All the storage containers around the shore were tossed all over the place like paper dolls,” Kim said his father told him.
Mike Kim said many people had sufficient warning to run to higher ground, but not everyone made it out before the wall of water struck.
“He lost a couple of friends because they had some of their businesses close to the shore,” Young Kim said. “He said there was a couple with two children; they passed away. The tsunami just took (their house).”
Kim said his parents operate a store, the Pago Mart, that suffered some damage. He said looters were beginning to roam the streets.
Saga Moi of Vista said she was relieved when she heard that her relatives survived the earthquake and tsunami relatively unscathed.
“My parents are OK,” Moi said. “My sister's in Pago Pago; she's OK.”
Moi said her parents, who are in their 70s and 80s, live in a remote village and were safer than people who live in coastal areas.
“Pago Pago was the village hit the hardest,” Moi said yesterday at First Samoan Congregational Christian Church of Mesa Margarita in Oceanside. “Everything there is damaged really bad.”
The 2000 U.S. Census estimated that 4,500 Samoans live in the county, with distinct communities in Oceanside, southeast San Diego and the South Bay. Oceanside has one of the largest populations of Samoans outside the islands.
Moi said communications were down but that her nephew, Young Kim in Northern California, managed to reach his father yesterday. Kim said his father, Mike Kim, described Pago Pago's waterfront as a ruin.
“All the storage containers around the shore were tossed all over the place like paper dolls,” Kim said his father told him.
Mike Kim said many people had sufficient warning to run to higher ground, but not everyone made it out before the wall of water struck.
“He lost a couple of friends because they had some of their businesses close to the shore,” Young Kim said. “He said there was a couple with two children; they passed away. The tsunami just took (their house).”
Kim said his parents operate a store, the Pago Mart, that suffered some damage. He said looters were beginning to roam the streets.
