A powerful earthquake of 7.9 magnitude Earthquake struck off Papua New Guinea, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre and the US Geological Survey said.
Issuing Tsunami alert the PTWC said hazardous tsunami waves could hit coastal areas of Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Nauru, the Solomon Islands and others.
The earthquake struck 60 km to the east of Taron, New Ireland, at 8.51 pm local time (1051 GMT) at a depth of some 75 km, the USGS said.
The earthquake was originally recorded at 8.0 before being revised down to 7.9.
“Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking…some casualties and damage are possible,” the USGS said on its website as it issued a yellow alert for shaking-related fatalities and losses.
