This from Reuters as of 4:00PM EST:
A powerful 8.0 magnitude earthquake in the Pacific off the Samoa islands region generated a tsunami, U.S. government agencies said on Tuesday.
and
The agency earlier issued a tsunami warning for New Zealand, American Samoa and other small Pacific islands.
This is a breaking story, and given my schedule, one that I won't be able to follow up on here. It was reported that the epicenter of the earthquake was located 120 miles southwest of American Samoa. It struck at a depth of 11.2 miles, which would allow the conditions of a tsunami.
UPDATE: Again this from Reuters as of 4:08PM EST.
Quake and tsunami in American Samoa cause deaths, no word on how many are dead
UPDATE #2: From CNN-Asia as of 4:15PM EST:
Officials were determining whether the tsunami could reach Hawaii, the center said. It was possible that a very decreased wave could reach Hawaii at 1:18 p.m. (7:18 ET), [Videll Hsu, a geophysicist with the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Ewa Beach, Hawaii] said.
Update #3: This from The Telegraph as of 4:21PM EST:
Local radio stations in Tonga broadcast warnings that a tsunami was possible and that people should move away from coastal villages, but police cited locals who said no big wave had been reported.
Niua Kama, a police spokesman, said residents did not appear to take the warning seriously.
"People are out on the roads, laughing at the warning," he told The Associated Press. "They are not moving from the coast" even though there had been "a strong warning of a tsunami. Police have not taken any action at this stage."
UPDATE #4: This from msnbc as of 4:30PM EST:
The representative from American Samoa to the U.S. Congress, Eni Faleomavaega, told NBC News that quake hit between the North Marianas Islands and American Samoa, creating 10 to 15- foot waves in populated low-lying areas like Pago Pago Bay.
"Cars were seen floating," the congressman said of Pago Pago Bay.
He said there will likely need to be mass evacuations of low-lying areas and there will be requests for assistance from Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.