A 7.2-magnitude earthquake stuck Vanuatu in the South Pacific early Thursday morning.
The epicenter was 55 kilometers southeast of worst-hit northern Vanuatu island Espiritu Santo and struck at 4:08 a.m., Kyodo reported
Speaking to Kyodo News from Santo, Densly Sympe, a journalist at Vanuatu`s Daily Post newspaper, said no one had been injured during the quake, but more than 60 homes had been destroyed on the island.
Local roads and shops had been damaged and water pipes broken, cutting of the island`s water supply, Sympe said.
``I am 23 years old and it was the worst earthquake I have experienced in Vanuatu. The walls of the house were moving and I could hear the neighbors running outside,`` he said. ``Nobody knew what to do. A lot of people feared that a tidal wave would come so they ran up to the hills.``
But the quake generated no tsunami, with no damage to the ships sailing near the islands.
``A destructive tsunami was not generated based on earthquake and historical tsunami data,`` said the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center on its website.
Copyright © 2007 ANTARA
0 comments:
Post a Comment