Strong earthquake rattles Papua New Guinea
The magnitude 6.5 quake struck the New Britain region of the country near the town of Mapuna. There is no tsunami threat to the U.S., NOAA says.
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PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea – On Monday morning, a strong earthquake struck one of the islands that make up the country of Papua New Guinea in the Western Pacific.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the magnitude 6.5 quake happened just before 8 a.m. local time (4 p.m. ET Sunday) near the town of Mapuna in the New Britain region of the country, nearly 70 miles east-southeast of Kimbe. It was about 50 miles deep.
There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
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A map shows the epicenter of a strong earthquake that shook Papua New Guinea on April 15, 2024.
NOAA’s U.S. Tsunami Warning System said there was no threat of a tsunami to Hawaii, the West Coast or any U.S. territories.
Papua New Guinea was hit by a severe earthquake in September 2022 that killed 21 people and injured 42 others.
Nearly 600 islands comprise Papua New Guinea and have a total land area of about 175,000 square miles in Oceania. Its only land border is with Indonesia on the island of New Guinea.