6.9 quake hits off Vanuatu, no tsunami

SYDNEY: A 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit off the coast of Vanuatu on Wednesday, but the second powerful tremor in the region this week did not trigger a Pacific tsunami warning.

The quake hit at 06:58 GMT off the village of Sola, some 442 kilometres (274 miles) north-northwest of the capital Port Vila, the United States Geological Survey said.

“Based on all available data a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected,” the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

The quake follows a similar 6.9-magnitude tremor off Vanuatu on Sunday, which prompted no reports of damage along the coast of the Pacific archipelago.

“I can’t see this one being any different,” Jonathan Bathgate, senior seismologist at government agency Geoscience Australia told AFP.

Bathgate said the two quakes were in a similar location and of similar magnitude, although Geoscience Australia put the latest quake at a magnitude 7.0.

Vanuatu is part of the “Ring of Fire”, a zone of tectonic activity around the Pacific that is subject to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

– AFP

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