And other homeowners seeking inspections this morning overwhelmed county Civil Defense telephone lines, prompting county officials to put in place plans to open new phone lines for reporting damage. Some callers unable to get through to civil defense officials, complained about the busy phone lines at the offices of Big Island Mayor Harry Kim.

County Civil Defense Director Troy Kindred said, "We've had in the hundreds of calls from people who have sustained damage to their homes." He added, "The dilemma is balancing trying to get that information, and maintaining a certain number of lines for someone who has an emergency response requirement."

The 14 severely damaged homes are spread across the western and northern portions of the island, including Kapa'au on North Kohala, Waikoloa, North Kona, Kawaihae and Pa'auilo on the Hamakua Coast.

Civil Defense officials plan to open two more phone lines later today and publicize the numbers with radio ads, said Jiro Sumada, deputy chief engineer for the county Department of Public Works. County officials also intend to today set up a Web-based system for making reports, he said. People who need safety inspections to determine whether they can safely occupy their homes should call 961-8316 or 961-8321, county officials said.

Kindred said disaster workers will continue today to try to locate and help any residents who might have been left isolated by the earthquake and unable to get help.

"We want to make sure we're not missing anyone in the community that may be at home and may not be able to get out, either special needs or disabilities or family member or the elderly who haven't shown up," he said. Kindred noted that he is unaware of any instances in which people had to be rescued.

Damage assessment teams with the American Red Cross, Federal Emergency Management Agency and state and county agencies this morning continued to catalog damages, civil defense officials said.