Rare occurrence in the Pacific region this morning as there were two earthquakes measuring more than 7 on the Richter scale within about 15 minutes in a distance of 50 kilometres between each other in Vanuatu just after 10am.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said a large tsunami could have been generated which would have caused a lot of destruction.
However speaking from Hawaii, scientist Stuart Weinstein said fortunately the largest wave activity was just about 1 metre high.
Weinstein said the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre is happy that people reacted quickly in Fiji after they issued the warning this morning as Fiji was very close to the impact point.
He said people should not get complacent as the decision to issue a tsunami warning is not made lightly from the Hawaii office.
Weinstein also said that there is a high possibility of aftershocks near Vanuatu and other strong earthquakes.
There may not be enough time to warn
The National Disaster Management Center stresses that there might not be any time to issue a tsunami and evacuation notice to the public if a tsunami originates within Fiji waters.
The 8.3 magnitude earthquake in Vanuatu this morning allowed local authorities enough time to issue the tsunami warning for Fiji and subsequently the evacuation notice for all coastal areas.
However, Dobui said from past experiences, if an earthquake occurs in Fiji and a tsunami is generated, it could only take minutes to strike.
During this morning's rush to get to higher ground, Fijivillage News witnessed that the main streets leading out of the capital city were jammed by traffic with people stuck in their vehicles for upto half an hour.
Dobui said DISMAC is currently working on a pilot project to come up with a tsunami evacuation plan for the major centers. He said certain areas will be identified as evacuation points.
He said they will also try and carry out a study to ascertain which areas people can evacuate on foot and not use their vehicles in attempts to move to higher ground.
He adds DISMAC is also in talks with various property owners in Walu Bay and Vatuwaqa, which are listed as high risk areas, to allow access to people to cross their property during an evacuation.
Traffic jam after tsunami warning
Police Spokesperson, Sergeant Atunaisa Sokomuri said though people were seen to be taking precautionary measures after the tsunami warning was issued, there were traffic jams in the city.
He said there is a need to look into the issue of traffic flow at times of a disaster.
Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the Fiji Bus Operators Association, Rohit Latchan said we all should be responsible in times of Emergency.
Latchan said they do not also want to put the drivers and other people's lives at risk by doing the wrong thing.
He said the Association believes that the most sensible thing to do during a disaster would be for teachers to take the students to higher grounds immediately and make arrangements with the bus companies to drop students home once the situation becomes stable.
Latchan also said that in case of an emergency, students will not be asked for adult fares and dropped to their destination with the student fare they have.
Government departments and schools along the coastal areas were closed around the country following the tsunami warning issued just after 10 o'clock this morning.
The Education Ministry sent out an advisory for schools along the coastal areas to close and for teachers to move the students to higher ground.
The PSC also directed civil servants to go home but requested that those still close to their work place to return to work following the cancellation of the tsunami warning.
Fijivillage contacted a number of hotels and resorts around the country who had initiated their emergency evacuation plans and moved all tourists to higher ground.
Fiji Hoteliers Association President Dixon Seeto said all stakeholders in the tourism industry took heed of the tsunami warning and evacuated all tourists to high ground.
Speaking to us after the cancellation of the warning, Seeto said the situation was under control as the resort operators acted quickly today.
