Earthquake strikes off New Caledonia
Pastor Dale Morgan
Earthquake strikes off New Caledonia*
2009-10-11 12:40
NOUMEA, Oct 11 (AFP) - A 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck off New
Caledonia on Sunday but was unlikely to trigger a tsunami, seismologists
said.
The quake hit about 380 kilometres (235 miles) east of Noumea, capital
of New Caledonia, at 2:12 pm (0312 GMT) at a depth of 35 kilometres, the
US Geological Survey said.
"It is too small and too far away from any population centres to cause
any damage or tsunamis," Phil Cummins, seismologist with Geoscience
Australia, told AFP.
The Asia-Pacific region has been rocked by a series of violent
earthquakes in recent days, including a magnitude 8.0 undersea quake off
the islands of Samoa on September 29 that triggered a deadly tsunami.
New Caledonia evacuated schools and ordered people away from the coast
on October 8 after a major 7.8 earthquake prompted a tsunami warning
across much of the South Pacific. (AFP)