A powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.7 occurred Friday in the Pacific Ocean southeast of New Caledonia, triggering a tsunami warning, the American Geophysical Institute (USGS), announced on Twitter.
The tremor was detected at a depth of 37 km and more than 300 kilometers from the Caledonian coast, according to the same source. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) believes that a tidal wave is "possible" within a radius of 1,000 kilometers around the epicenter.
Tsunami warning lifted
"Based on the preliminary parameters of the earthquake, dangerous tsunami waves are possible on coasts within 1,000 km of the earthquake epicenter," the PTWC said in a bulletin.
A tsunami warning was issued before being lifted by the authorities. The coastline was evacuated. A hotel receptionist in Noumea, the capital of New Caledonia, told AFP she had not felt any shaking.
- New Caledonia
- Earthquakes
- Planet