CBC Canada is reporting that according to a report from Kalaallit Nunaata Radioa (KNR), the national broadcaster in Greenland, the tsunami that hit the west coast of Greenland Saturday night swept away 11 homes in the village of Nuugaatsiaq.
KNR also reported the village has been evacuated, adding that the waves also struck the communities of Uummannaq and Illorsuit. Boats and helicopters have been deployed to help in search and rescue efforts. Because we live in the age of social media, many residents posted videos of the event.
CBC Canada says that 39 people have been evacuated from Nuugaatsiaq, also mentioning that many residents in Nunavut have family ties in Greenland. At least nine of the evacuated people were injured, two of them sustaining serious injuries. The injured were taken to the hospital.
This information was updated after KNR reported on a press conference given by Police Chief Bjorn Tegner Bay on Sunday. The police chief says there are 101 registered citizens in the village of Nuugaatsiaq. At least 78 of those citizens were registered as evacuees when taken to the city of Uummannaq, leaving 23 people still unaccounted for.
The police chief said the discrepancy was concerning, but it could be that some residents were either fishing or hunting, or could have been on holiday. Authorities are asking that anyone not in the village at the time of the incident, call them to confirm they are safe.
The UK’s Mirror reports that Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said it was a “terrible natural catastrophe at Nuugaatsiaq,” while meteorologist Trine Dahl-Jensen told Danish news agency Ritzausaid: “It’s not normal, such a large quake in Greenland.”
