Banks survive the quake

With operations throughout Samoa, American Samoa and Indonesia, ANZ Bank and its staff have been the most affected by the tragedies.

With operations throughout Samoa, American Samoa and Indonesia, ANZ Bank and its staff have been the most affected by the tragedies.

ANZ Samoan managing director Steve Rogers revealed yesterday that he led a team of bank staff on a mission to rescue 21 New Zealand tourists after the earthquake hit last week.

"A visitor from NZ who was on holiday contacted me on my cellphone 30 minutes after the earthquake as they had no way of getting out and had lost everything," he said.

"They had escaped tragedy by seconds and there were broken bones and lots of abrasions. Three of us went to the south coast last Thursday with three four-wheel-drives and extracted them.

"We fed, clothed, and ferried them around to hospitals, high commissions and airlines. It was a real team effort when we were desperately short of staff."

The chief executive of ANZ's Asia Pacific operations, Alex Thursby, said all bank staff were safe but many had lost relatives and friends.

"We're supporting our people through this difficult time and we've been moved by stories about members of our staff who have continued to support customers despite being personally impacted by the tragic events in their local communities."

Westpac spokesman David Lording said the group's branches in Tonga and Samoa had re-opened. "We're open for business and we've organised additional assistance to help customers and staff," he said.

ANZ also has an extensive branch network in Indonesia through its ANZ Panin joint venture, but it does not have a presence in the earthquake-ravaged Padang region in West Sumatra where some villages have been destroyed.

The bank's operations in Vietnam and Cambodia have remained open even though Typhoon Ketsana has caused widespread flooding.

ANZ spokeswoman Mairi Barton said branches in the popular tourist destination Siem Reap in Cambodia had been threatened by the floods and some had been sand-bagged to prevent damage."

Donations to Red Cross aid programs for the disasters can be made by telephoning 1800 811 700.