More than 100 people are feared to have been killed from a major earthquake and its following tsunami in South Pacific islands of Samoa and Tonga.

According to Samoan officials, at least another 145 people have been injured and a large number of villages destroyed. AFP reported that some villages were wiped out.

An earthquake measuring 8.3 on the Richter scale hit the Samoa Island on Tuesday evening.

The Samoa islands comprise two separate entities-the nation of Samoa and American Samoa, a US territory -- with a total population of about 250,000 people.

So far, more than 100 people have lost their lives across American Samoa and neighboring independent Samoa while at least seven people died in Tonga.

A fresh tsunami warning was issued with police asking residents to go away from water, witnesses say.

Despite the local warning in the nervous Samoan capital of Apia, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a fresh alert and the US Geological Survey did not record any new major earthquake in the area, AFP reported.

President Barack Obama has declared a major disaster in American Samoa, enabling federal funding to be made available to help victims.

Samoa's Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi sent his condolences to the families of the dead, saying he was 'shocked' and 'saddened' by the sudden event.

"So much has gone. So many people are gone…I'm so shocked, so saddened by all the loss," he told the Australian news agency AAP.

According to the US Geological Survey, the earthquake shook the waters about 120 miles (190 km) southwest of the remote Pacific islands at 1748 GMT on Tuesday, triggering tidal waves up to 15 feet (4.5 meters) high above normal sea level.

A tsunami watch has also been put in effect for New Zealand, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, and other small Pacific islands.

HSH/FF/AKM