Tsunami death toll reaches 150 in Samoa

SAMOANS searched flattened homes and debris-filled swamps, while dazed survivors told of being trapped underwater or flung inland by a tsunami that ravaged towns and killed at least 150 people in the South Pacific.

The day after the disaster struck, officials were expecting the death toll to rise as more areas were searched.

“To me it was like a monster – just black water coming to you. It wasn’t a wave that breaks, it was a full force of water coming straight,” said Luana Tavale, an American Samoa government employee.