Strong earthquake hits off the Solomon Islands, no damage

Strong earthquake hits off the Solomon Islands, no damage

2011-02-08 10:37:02 GMT+7 (ICT)

HONIARA, SOLOMON ISLANDS (BNO NEWS) -- A strong earthquake struck off the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific Ocean on early Tuesday morning, seismologists said, but no damage or casualties were reported.

The 6.2-magnitude earthquake at 6.53 a.m. local time on Tuesday (1953 GMT on Monday) was centered about 150 kilometers (95 miles) west-southwest of Chirovanga on Choiseul Island of the Solomon Islands, which consists of nearly 1,000 islands. It struck about 413.9 kilometers (257.2 miles) deep, making it a deep earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

Because of the depth of the earthquake, and the distance from the nearby coastlines, the USGS estimated that 314,000 people may have perceived weak shaking that should not result in damage or casualties. The earthquake was also not strong enough to generate a tsunami.

The Solomon Islands are on the so-called 'Pacific Ring of Fire', an arc of fault lines circling the Pacific Basin that is prone to frequent and large earthquakes. Volcanic eruptions also occur frequently in the region.

On December 26, 2004, one of the most powerful earthquakes ever recorded struck off the west coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. The 9.1-magnitude earthquake unleashed a deadly tsunami, striking scores of countries. In all, at least 227,898 people were killed.

Most recently, on October 25, a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck just off the Mentawai Islands off the western coast of Sumatra. As a result, a wall of water killed at least 435 people on the islands and impacted more than 20 villages.

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