A massive earthquake of 8.0 magnitude hit off the coast of Papua New Guinea on Saturday. A tsunami warning has been issued.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) has said that widespread hazardous tsunami waves are possible.
The quake of 8.0 magnitude struck 157 km east of Rabaul, Papua New Guinea, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported.
The PTWC said tsunami waves were possible in the next three hours along some coasts of not only Papua New Guinea but also Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, Pohnpei, Chuuk, Nauru, Kosrae and Vanuatu, according to Reuters reports.
The New Zealand Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management (MCDEM)Emergency on Twitter said that it is issuing tsunami warnings for New Zealand too after the New Guinea earthquake.
We are issueing an official tsunami warning for NZ following the mag 8 earthquake in Papua New Guinea #eqnz
— MCDEM (@NZcivildefence) December 17, 2016
More details on the earthquake are awaited.
