Powerful quake hits Papua New Guinea, tsunami alert issued
CANBERRA, Australia — A powerful earthquake stuck Papua New Guinea on Tuesday evening, triggering a tsunami alert for the country and for the nearby Solomon Islands.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake measured magnitude 7.5 and was located 45 kilometres (28 miles) northeast of Kokopo. It was centred at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometres (6 miles), it said.
Shallow earthquakes tend to cause more damage on the Earth’s surface, but the USGS estimated that damage and injuries would be low because of the sparse population.
Papua New Guinea is located on the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, to the east of Indonesia.