Another Earthquake Strikes Papua, New Guinea- This Time A VERY Strong 6.8 Magnitude

The earthquake struck just 55 miles outside the town of Rabaul and at a depth of 310 miles.

It would have been felt by people 470 miles away and could have cause damage to buildings up to 37 miles away.

It is not known how much damage the earthquake has caused or if anyone has been injured.

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

No tsunami warning has been issued.

Seismologist Jonathan Bathgate, of Geoscience Australia, said: “It’s only 10 to 20 kilometres off the coast but still it’s very deep, so it wouldn’t be anything extreme at all. No tsunami.”

Papua New Guinea sits on the Pacific’s Ring of Fire, and is notoriously prone for seismic activity due to the where it sits along tectonic plates.

The earthquake was recorded at 1.22pm local time (4.22am GMT)on Wednesday.

Papua New Guinea has a population of around 7.3 million, and comprises of a cluster of islands in the southwestern part of the Pacific.

It comes after a 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck 310 miles off the coast of Vanuatu earlier this month.

At the time, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) issued a warning for areas close to the quake, although there was no Pacific-wide threat of a tsunami, the Hawaii-based centre said.

The PTWC issued the preliminary warning of “hazardous tsunami waves” which covers the region of Vanuatu, Fiji and New Caledonia.

Original Article:http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/705565/Papua-New-Guinea-earthquake-magnitude