MOSCOW: A 7.6-magnitude earthquake has hit Papua New Guinea, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported.
The quake occurred at a depth of about 38 miles (61.4 kilometres) at 23:46 GMT on Saturday, about 41 miles (67 kilometres) east of Kainantu, a town in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea, USGS said.
According to Sputnik, the US tsunami warning system said that there was a tsunami threat following the earthquake.
“Hazardous tsunami waves from this earthquake are possible within 1,000 km (621 miles) of the epicentre along the coasts of Papua New Guinea and Indonesia,“ the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said.
The earthquake was preceded by two weaker quakes that occurred southwest of the Indonesian coastal city of Pariaman. The first one (magnitude 6) hit at 23:10, at a depth of 20 kilometres (12 miles), while the second one (magnitude 5.7) occurred at 23:24 GMT at a depth of 10 kilometres.
There were no immediate reports of damages. - Bernama
