A large seismic earthquake swarm looks to be building and has even produced a magnitude-7.7 earthquake that struck the South Pacific east of Australia, leading to brief tsunami warnings for Vanuatu, Fiji, New Zealand, New Caledonia, and Kiribati this past Thursday.
According to the Independent, The earthquake struck near the Loyalty Islands at a depth of about 38 km (24 miles), according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
The massive quake even triggered a tsunami warning for Vanuatu. This was revised down much lower than an initial forecast, from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, which had said 3m waves could strike the island nation.
In the aftermath of the quake, Australia’s meteorology bureau issued a tsunami threat for Lord Howe Island off its east coast and warned the roughly 450 inhabitants to leave the water’s edge due to waves and strong currents. This was later downgraded to a marine warning.
Only 24 hours later, An earthquake of magnitude 7.1 struck southeast of the Loyalty Islands in the French territory of New Caledonia on Saturday, the authorities said, with no danger of a tsunami.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) which reported several aftershocks around the region after the 7.1 magnitude earthquake said the quake hit at a depth of about 36 km (22.37 miles).
