(CNN) -- Survivors of a deadly earthquake-triggered tsunami which hit the Samoan islands Tuesday have described how they watched the inrushing sea swallow up coastal towns and villages leaving devastation in its wake.



iReporter Alden Tagarino captured this image of the damage caused by the tsunami in Pago Pago.



At least 111 people are confirmed killed in Samoa, neighboring American Samoa and Tonga. But officials in the Polynesia region have expressed fears the toll will rise as rescue workers struggle to reach outlying villages submerged and flattened by the wave.



American Samoa resident Frances Faumatu told CNN she had fled to Aoloau, the highest village on the island, as the earthquake shook her house.



"All of a sudden we heard on the radio everybody had to run for safety," she said. "Right after the quake, the tsunami came."



Faumatu and others stayed on the mountain for two or three hours until the warning was lifted, watching as the sea swallowed Pago Pago, island's capital, and then receded.



At least 22 people are confirmed dead in the U.S. island territory. Cars, debris, and parts of buildings were randomly strewn over the landscape where the powerful waters dropped them. See iReporter images of the aftermath »



But in some cases, the sea left nothing behind. "Other villages were taken to the ocean," Faumatu said.



"I can't even compare the image. It's one thing to see a photo or footage, but just to be there in person is pretty dramatic," Maneafaiga T. Lagafuaina told CNN Wednesday. "American Samoa itself is experiencing a great loss."



The 8.0-magnitude quake hit the small cluster of Samoan islands in the South Pacific early Tuesday.



In Samoa, the death toll stands at 82, according to government minister Maulolo Tavita. But he said he feared the number of causalities would continue to rise.



Around 220,000 people live on the two main islands which make up the nation of Samoa. The population of American Samoa is about 66,000.  See a map of the affected region »



Salamo Laumoli, director of health services at the LBJ Tropical Medical Center in Pago Pago, said he feared more fatalities would turn up as rescue workers strived to access parts of the island severed by damaged infrastructure.



"I thought it was the end of the world," said Laumoli. "I have never felt an earthquake like that before."



Patients at the hospital were briefly moved to higher ground, but they were soon brought back and the hospital is operating, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency said. The airport in the capital of Pago Pago was also operational and being used for emergency flights, FEMA said.



A U.S. Coast Guard C-130 cargo plane was scheduled to land Wednesday around noon Eastern time, which coincides with sunrise in the Pacific U.S. protectorate, said Craig Fugate, FEMA administrator. A second C-130 was scheduled to land around 5 p.m. ET.



"The wave came onshore and washed out people's homes," said Cinta Brown, an American Samoa homeland security official working at the island's emergency operations center.



The same happened on the hard-hit east and west sides of American Samoa, said Brown, who was standing in a parking lot when her sport utility vehicle began rocking left and right.



She said she could hear the rattling of metal of a large chain-link fence around the lot. "It shakes you because you know something else is coming," she said.



The British Foreign Office said one of the dead in American Samoa was a British national, but no other details were provided.



In Tonga, Lord Tuita, the acting prime minister, said at least seven people had been confirmed dead on the northern island of Niuatoputapu. Three others were missing and four people were being treated for serious injuries, he said.



"The hospital on the island is reported to have suffered major damage; telephone communications has been cut as a result of damage to equipment and facilities on the island; homes and government buildings have been destroyed; the airport runway has been severely damaged making it impossible for
How many are dead in Samoan islands? What do officials fear? What was the magnitude of the quake that struck early Tuesday? How many dead in Samoan islands after Pacific tsunami?
At least 111 people the toll will rise 8.0-magnitude At least 111 people are confirmed killed in Samoa,
question: How many are dead in Samoan islands?, answer: At least 111 people | question: What do officials fear?, answer: the toll will rise | question: What was the magnitude of the quake that struck early Tuesday?, answer: 8.0-magnitude | question: How many dead in Samoan islands after Pacific tsunami?, answer: At least 111 people are confirmed killed in Samoa,