7.0-magnitude earthquake near the Solomon Islands prompts tsunami warning in USA
The United States Geological Survey issued a tsunami warning on Tuesday after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit offshore from the Solomon Islands.
US tsunami warnings predicted waves of 30cm for Solomon Islands, with waves of up to 30 cm for Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu.
No substantial damage to structures in Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands, has been recorded, but the prime minister’s office has urged residents to seek higher ground.
The USGS reported that the depth of the quake near Malango was only 10 kilometres.
It was stated that the shaking was so strong that it shook televisions and other things off their stands and into the floor.
Charley Piringi, a freelance writer, said he was outside a warehouse near two schools on the outskirts of Honiara when the quake hit, sending the students running.
“The earthquake rocked the place, It was a huge one. We were all shocked, and everyone is running everywhere.”
After the earthquake, the attorney general’s official Twitter account shared photos of a chaotic scene in the office.
Receptionist Joy Nisha of the Heritage Park Hotel in Honiara told the AFP news agency, “This was a big one. Some of the things in the hotel fell. Everyone seems OK, but panicky.”
A member of the AFP news staff in the capital said that the tremors lasted for almost 20 seconds.
People were abandoning their workplaces and heading for higher ground as the city’s power went out in several sections.
