( CNN ) -- A magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck the Pacific near American Samoa , triggering towering tsunami waves that gushed over the island and leaving at least 22 people dead . The tsunami wave hit right in the middle of the harbor of Pago Pago , the capital . American Samoa Gov . Togiola Tulafono , speaking from Hawaii , said Tuesday 's quake ranked `` right up there with some of the worst '' disasters on the island . He said about 50 people had been treated for injuries so far but he expected that number to rise . The quake hit the small cluster of South Pacific islands early Tuesday morning . By evening , Laumoli , standing outside the LBJ Tropical Medican Center morgue in the capital of Pago Pago , confirmed 22 deaths . `` I thought it was the end of the world , '' said Dr. Salamo Laumoli , director of health services . `` I have never felt an earthquake like that before . '' Laumoli feared more fatalities would turn up as rescue workers were still trying to access parts of the island severed by damaged infrastructure . Laumoli said people in outlying villages on one end of the main island have been cut off because the main bridge was washed away . `` Two or three villages have been badly damaged , '' he told CNN International . Listen to Laumoli speak about the impact of the quake and tsunami » . Tulafono cited extensive damage to roads , buildings and homes , and said he had spoken to the military about mobilizing reserve forces for assistance . The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Ewa Beach , Hawaii , canceled tsunami watches and warnings for American Samoa about four hours after the earthquake hit . However , a tsunami advisory is still in effect for for the coastal areas of California and Oregon . Watch report on end of tsunami warning » . The Japan Meteorological Agency also activated a tsunami advisory along its eastern coast . The precautionary alert means that the height of a possible tsunami wave would be less than a foot and a half . President Barack Obama `` declared a major disaster exists in the Territory of American Samoa '' late Tuesday and ordered federal aid to supplement local efforts . The declaration makes federal funding available to affected individuals . The tsunami waves hit right in the middle of the Pago Pago harbor , the capital , said Cinta Brown , an American Samoa homeland security official working at the island 's emergency operations center . The water devastated the village of Leone . Watch a resident talk about what happened » . `` The wave came onshore and washed out people 's homes , '' Brown said . The same happened on the hard-hit east and west sides of American Samoa , she said . The quake generated three separate tsunami waves , the largest measuring 5.1 feet from sea level height , said Vindell Hsu , a geophysicist with the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center . Preliminary data had originally reported a larger tsunami . Officials in the U.S. territory issued a clear call and were focusing on assessing the damage , Brown said . Reports of damage were still emerging , but a bulletin from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the waves `` may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicenter and could also be a threat to more distant coasts . Authorities should take appropriate action in response to this possibility . '' Tulafono , the governor , was on his way back home Tuesday night on one of two U.S. Coast Guard C-130 transport planes flying to American Samoa with aid . The Coast Guard also will transport more than 20 officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to American Samoa , said John Hamill , external affairs officer for FEMA in Oakland , California . The FEMA team will include a variety of debris experts , housing experts , members of the Corps of Engineers , and other disaster relief specialists , Hamill said . Tulafono told reporters Tuesday that it was hard being away from home when disaster came calling . It was a time , he said , for families to be together . Those who experienced the massive quake described it as a terrifying event . Brown was standing in a parking lot when her sports utility vehicle began rocking left and right . `` You could hear the rattling of the metal '' of a large chain link fence around the lot , Brown said . `` It shakes you because you know something else is coming , '' she said . CNN 's Augie Martin , Mariano Castillo , Moni Basu , Tess Eastment and Nick Valencia contributed to this report .
NEW : White House declares major disaster ; requests federal aid . U.S. sends ships with aid , officials to help American people . Magnitude-8.0 quake struck near Hawaiian Islands early Tuesday . Quake struck at depth of 7.4 miles , triggered by 5-foot tsunamis .