Deep 6.9-magnitude earthquake strikes off Fiji, no tsunami alert

USPA News - A powerful earthquake struck the South Pacific Ocean near the Republic of Fiji on early Sunday, seismologists said, but the tremor was centered too deep below the seabed to cause any tsunami concerns. There were no reports of damage or casualties.

The 6.9-magnitude earthquake at 7:57 a.m. local time on Sunday (1857 GMT Saturday) was centered about 142 kilometers (88 miles) northeast of Ndoi Island, a small island which is part of Fiji. It struck about 421.9 kilometers (262.2 miles) deep, making it a deep earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Computer models estimated that approximately 104,000 people on islands in the region may have felt weak or light shaking from Sunday`s earthquake, the USGS said, but there were no reports of damage or casualties. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the earthquake struck too deep below the seabed to pose a tsunami threat. Fiji and the wider region are on the so-called `Pacific Ring of Fire,` an arc of fault lines circling the Pacific Basin which is prone to frequent and large earthquakes.