An earthquake of magnitude 7.3 shook the waters of the Vanuatu archipelago, in the South Pacific, this Tuesday, with a tsunami warning and without the authorities initially reporting any victims or material damage.
The United States Geological Survey, which records seismic activity around the world, noted that The earthquake occurred at 12:47 local time (02:47 in Spain), and placed it 57.1 kilometers deep under the seabed.
The epicenter of the earthquake – which was followed by a magnitude 5.5 aftershock – was located about 30 kilometers west of the capital, Port-Vila.
After the earthquake, the American Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, based in Honolulu, published the possibility of tsunami waves of 0.3 to 1 meter above tide level on the coast of Vanuatu.
Vanuatu is located near the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire and the underwater volcanoes of the Lau Basin, which is why it regularly registers earthquakes of seismic origin.
The Republic of Vanuatu, with a population of around 250,000 inhabitants, is made up of an archipelago of volcanic origin.