USGS: Strong 6.3 magnitude earthquake hits off Papua New Guinea

Hindustan Times
Tue, 26 Jul 2016 06:16 UTC

© USGS

A map of Papua New Guinea showing the epicentre of the quake (blue) that hit the island nation on Tuesday, 26 July 2016.

A strong 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck off Papua New Guinea in the Admiralty Islands area early today, US geologists said, but no destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is expected.

The offshore quake hit at 5.38am (local time) and occurred 128km southeast of Lorengau, Papua New Guinea, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

The epicentre was at a depth of 6.6km.

No damage or injuries were immediately reported. The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre assured that there was no threat of a widespread tsunami.

Quakes are common for the island nation that lies on the 4,000km-long Pacific Australia plate, which forms part of the "Ring of Fire", a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates.