A powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck Vanuatu’s capital of Port Vila on Tuesday, with footage showing some collapsed buildings and “considerable damage” to a shared diplomatic mission.
The quake struck 30km west of the capital at a depth of 57.1km, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, and was followed by a magnitude 5.5 aftershock nearby.
The US Tsunami Warning System cancelled an initial tsunami warning for Vanuatu, which is comprised of 80 islands that are home to about 330,000 people.
It was not immediately clear how much damage was caused as phone lines and government websites remained down and official channels have not been updated, but reports of widespread destruction began to emerge on social media hours after the quake, the Associated Press reported.
A Red Cross spokesperson in Fiji said workers on the ground were reporting significant damage. Video shared by the Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation showed crowds outside the Vila Central Hospital appearing to lift injured people onto stretchers.
Phone numbers for the police, the hospital and other public agencies did not connect. There were no immediate confirmed reports of casualties.
A video posted on social media appeared to show crumpled buildings in Port Vila, including one that had collapsed onto cars.
A building housing a number of diplomatic missions in Port Vila – including those of the United States, Britain, France and New Zealand – was significantly damaged, New Zealand’s Foreign Ministry said. Officials were in the process of accounting for New Zealand High Commission staff, a spokesperson said.
A video posted to social media depicted the building with some damage to its structure, including buckled windows and debris that had crumbled from walls to the ground. Other photos and videos showed items and shelves that had tumbled to the floors of shops and landslides that appeared to block some roads.
The US closed its embassy in Vanuatu due to “considerable damage” to its mission, the country’s embassy in Papua New Guinea said. “The US embassy in Port Vila has sustained considerable damage and is closed until further notice,” it said in a statement on social media. “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this earthquake.”
Videos shared on social media also showed an image of a landslide triggered by the quake.
Many large buildings have collapsed in Port Vila, electricity is down and water is cut in most of the capital, Care Australia, a non-profit humanitarian agency, said in a statement.
Professor Meghan Miller, from the research school of earth sciences at the Australian National University, said the quake hit a seismically active area and “moderate damage” was likely.
“In this region, where the tectonic plates converge is one the world’s most seismically active plate boundaries,” she said, “The earthquake hypocentre was fairly deep, about 57km, which means there was no tsunami generated. However … the island experienced very strong shaking, likely resulting in moderate damage to structures.”
New Zealand’s foreign ministry said 37 New Zealanders were registered as being in Vanuatu, but did not provide any further details about their status, the Associated Press said.
