An earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale in the Pacific Ocean southeast of New Caledonia led to the issuance of a tsunami warning this Thursday.
The tremors were detected at a depth of 37 kilometers, near the Loyalty Islands and 333.8 kilometers off the coast of New Caledonia, the American Institute of Geophysics (USGS, its abbreviation in English) said.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) said a tidal wave within a radius of 1,000 kilometers around the epicenter is “possible”, including waves up to three meters high in the Republic of Vanuatu.
The police and firemen ordered the evacuation of the population. Sirens against the tsunami went off, and the population was advised to move away from the coast, the director of civil protection of New Caledonia, Colonel Marchi Leccia, said on the radio.
A journalist from Agence France-Presse (AFP) witnessed the evacuation of all people from the beach in New Caledonia.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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