At least 12 people were killed and many more missing after a powerful earthquake and tsunami struck the tiny Solomon Islands and triggered a Pacific-wide tsunami alert.
The shallow quake, with a magnitude of at least 8.0, levelled buildings and damaged a hospital on Gizo island northwest of the Solomons capital, Honiara, while a tsunami sucked homes into the sea as thousands of panicked residents fled for higher ground.
At least seven people died in Gizo, many trapped in their homes when waves swept through the town. Other bodies could be seen but not reached because of big waves, the government said.
"The wave was up to 10 metres (32 feet) high in some villages," Solomon Islands' chief government spokesman said. "Some villages have been entirely washed away."
The quake struck 350 kilometres (220 miles) north-west of Honiara during the morning and sparked a tsunami alert around the Pacific.
Solomons Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare said the disaster could have been worse if it had happened only a few hours earlier, in darkness, when more people would have been asleep.