Map of Tsunami travel time
Map of Tsunami travel timeIsrael news photo: US NOAA

Bnei Akiva’s New Zealand emissary Netanel Posner says the group has overcome fears that the Samoa Tsunami would wreck local sukkot. He told Israel National Television TV that New Zealand was not directly affected by the underwater earthquake but that there were initial fears of a forced cancellation of activities on the holiday.

Bnei Akiva also was worried that secondary tidal waves would wash away sukkot, the temporary dwellings used on the holiday, which this year begins on the Sabbath. Despite the distance of several hundred miles between New Zealand and Samoa, where the Tsunami struck, Posner said worried Israelis called to make sure friends and relatives were not in danger.