6.7-magnitude quake rattles Papua Guinea
An earthquake measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale has struck Papua New Guinea, with no casualties reported so far.
US seismologists said the tremor hit the Oceania country at 08:45 p.m. local time (1045 GMT) on Thursday.
The quake occurred 131 kilometers (81 miles) southwest of the town of Kokopo located in the province of East New Britain. The epicenter of Thursday’s tremor was 43 kilometers (27 miles) deep.
There have been no reports of casualties or damages so far.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said “a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected” on the island.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) initially put the quake’s strength at 6.8, but later revised it down to 6.7 on the Richter scale.
Geoscience Australia's senior seismologist, Mark Leonard, was quoted by AFP as saying that the tremor was unlikely to cause any serious damage to Papua New Guinea.
"It's this deep and it's just on the end of the coast, so the area of damage is only a few kilometers around," Leonard said, adding, "That outpost of New Britain is very sparsely-populated so we're not really expecting any serious damage."
Leonard further noted that no tsunami would be generated as an earthquake at this depth does not result in the displacement of sea floors.
On March 30, a 7.5-magnitude earthquake hit the region some 55 kilometers (34 miles) from Kokopo, causing residents to flee from their homes.
Earthquakes are common in Papua New Guinea, which lies on the Ring of Fire, the arc of seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean,
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