A major earthquake struck beneath the Solomon Sea this evening, New Zealand time.
Friday, 11th April 2014
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck beneath the Solomon Sea near Bougainville, at 7:07 this evening, New Zealand time. The quake was centred 57 km south-west of Panguna, Papua New Guinea, 69 km south-west of Arawa, Papua New Guinea at a depth of 50 km according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
NZ seismograph network 11 April 2014, courtesy GeoNet
[click for larger image] The earthquake left a distinctive trace on New Zealand’s seismograph network.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre reports the event as magnitude 7.3 at a depth of 54 km. In a bulletin issued at 7:15 p.m. New Zealand Standard Time, it advised that a destructive widespread tsunami threat did not exist, based on historical tsunami and earthquake data.
Geoscience Australia reports the event as magnitude 7.4 at a depth of 5 km. It estimates that the quake would have caused damage within 150 km of the epicentre and would have been felt up to 1800 km away.
The Joint Australian Tsunami Watch Centre issued a bulletin advising that there was no tsunami threat to the Australian mainland, islands or territories.