SYDNEY - A 7.5 magnitude earthquake rocked the Loyalty Islands region of the South Pacific on Wednesday, the US Geological Survey said. The quake, centred 85 kilometres (55 miles) southwest of Vanuatu and 175 kilometres northeast of the Loyalty Islands in the French territory of New Caledonia, struck at 12:46 GMT and 88 kilometres deep, the USGS said. There were no immediate reports of damage.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no threat of a tsunami, but advised earthquakes of such size “sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts” within a hundred kilometres of the epicentre. |