Latest fromPacific Islands

Families cautioned against travel to Samoa
Well-intentioned helpers could place extra pressure on already scarce resources, says pastor.

Tsunami strands NZ students
A group of high school students spent a day and night stranded on a tiny island off Samoa, after watching the tsunami sweep away their belongings.

NZ aid arrives in Samoa
Aid has begun arriving in Samoa in what will be an ongoing effort as the scale of devastation from the quake and tsunami becomes clear.

Tsunami survivors tell of destruction and chaos
Reporter Edward Gay is at Auckland Airport speaking with people who have flown from Apia this morning.

Anxious wait for Samoan travellers
Reporter Edward Gay is at Auckland Airport speaking with people who have flown from Apia this morning.

Tourist tsunami death toll could rise - McCully
The death toll for tourists in Samoa could rise in some areas where the tsunami warning system may not have worked so well.

Searching for bodies amid the devastation
A salty smell hangs over the devastated Samoan village of Lalomanu as police teams pick their way through the debris looking for bodies.

Tsunami survivors describe 'Hell on Earth'
Residents and visitors in Samoa describe the terror of knowing what would be next after a massive quake rocked the tiny island nation

'All three of them gone' - mother sees children swept away
Salamasina Taufua was basking in the sun yesterday watching her three young children playing on the sand when a tsunami swept all three away.

Latest updates: Tsunami disaster
Read here for the latest news following the Samoan earthquake and tsunami.

Nine NZers injured in Samoan tsunami - one dead
Nine New Zealanders are now confirmed injured, and one dead, in today's Samoan tsunami.

Entire villages wiped out as death toll climbs
Horror stories are emerging in the aftermath of today's 8.3 magnitude quake and tsunami in Samoa.