Powerful 7.5 quake strikes off New Caledonia, Tsunami warning issued

Sydney, Dec 5: A shallow and powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck off the Pacific islands of New Caledonia on Wednesday, US seismologists said, triggering a tsunami warning for the area.

"Based on the preliminary earthquake parameters" the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said, "hazardous tsunami waves are possible for coasts located within 1000 kilometres of the earthquake epicentre."

New Zealand authorities issued a similar warning after the quake, which struck just 10 kilometres beneath the surface. USGS originally gave the magnitude of the quake as 7.6 before revising it downwards slightly.

Last week, a massive earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter Scale struck Alaska, United States. Several aftershocks followed minutes later. The quake was centred about 11km north of Anchorage, the largest city in the state, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

PTI