At least forty seven people have been killed in a tsunami caused by a powerful earthquake measuring 8.3 on Richter scale which struck the South Pacific islands of Samoa and the American Samoa. According to officials the toll could be more than a hundred as entire villages have been wiped out. There is wide level of destruction and people are fleeing to higher ground. Samoa's delegate to the US Congress, Eni Faleomavaega, told AFP that thousands of people had been left homeless.The Samoa islands comprise two separate entities – the nation of Samoa and American Samoa, a US territory – with a total population of about 250,000 people. President Barrack Obama has declared a major disaster in American Samoa, enabling federal funding to be made available to help victims.