Massive earthquake strikes the South Pacific Ocean, no tsunami warning

Phuket NEWS Hound– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket readers

PHUKET: A major earthquake struck off the Kermadec Islands in the South Pacific Ocean early this morning, seismologists report, but no tsunami warning was issued.

The 7.6-magnitude quake at 5.57am local time (about 1am Phuket time) was centered about 180 kilometers (112 miles) east of Raoul Island, which is part of the Kermadec Islands. It struck about 39.8 kilometers (24.7 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

There have been no reports of tremors in Phuket.

No tsunami warning was issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC), although it cautioned there is a low chance of a local tsunami near the epicenter.

“No destructive widespread tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data,” the PTWC said in a bulletin.

It added: “However, earthquakes of this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts located within a hundred kilometers of the earthquake epicenter. Authorities in the region of the epicenter should be aware of this possibility and take appropriate action.”

— Phuket Gazette Editors