[Mise à jour 17h05] Vanuatu earthquake, destroyed buildings and victims, says witness

The earthquake felt early in the afternoon in New Caledonia had serious consequences in Vanuatu. A witness told AFP that he had seen corpses in the streets of Port Vila and videos on social networks showed significant damage, notably to a building housing several diplomatic representations including the French embassy but also to a grocery store that collapsed.

The epicenter of this earthquake detected at 12:47 p.m. local time was recorded at a depth of 43 kilometers in the sea, just 30 kilometers west of the Vanuatu capital, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). ), triggering a tsunami alert.

“Tsunami waves were observed,” the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) said in a bulletin. The latter initially said he feared the arrival of waves up to a meter high along certain coasts of Vanuatu, before raising his alert.

Michael Thompson, who lives in Port Vila, told AFP he had seen dead bodies in the streets of the capital. “There were people in the buildings downtown, there were bodies when we passed by,” he declared. He also reported collapsed bridges and landslides caused by the earthquake. According to images he posted online, the earthquake damaged the building housing the American and French embassies in Port Vila.

The earthquake toppled a concrete pillar, cracked a wall and distorted windows in the building, which also houses the diplomatic representations of other countries including New Zealand, again according to images shared on social networks.

The floor “no longer exists. It’s completely flat. The three upper floors still stand” but dropped in height, described Michael Thompson. “The telephone network has been cut” he told AFP using his satellite phone.

US Embassy closed

“The US Embassy in Port Vila has suffered considerable damage and is closed until further notice”said the diplomatic mission in a statement published on X, advising American nationals present in Vanuatu to contact the United States embassy in Papua New Guinea in the event of “need assistance”.

Earthquakes are common in Vanuatu, in this low-lying archipelago of 320,000 people that straddles the seismic Pacific Ring of Fire, an arc of intense tectonic activity that stretches from Southeast Asia to the Basin. Peaceful. Vanuatu is ranked among the countries most vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, storm damage, floods and tsunamis, according to the annual Global Risks Report.

Powerful earthquake off the coast of Vanuatu, a witness reports victims

Sydney, Australia

A 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck Vanuatu on Tuesday, causing significant damage, a brief tsunami alert and, according to a witness, victims, in this Pacific archipelago particularly vulnerable to natural disasters.

A witness told AFP he had seen bodies in buildings in the capital Port Vila and videos on social networks show significant damage to a building housing several diplomatic representations including the French embassy.

The epicenter of this earthquake detected at 12:47 p.m. local time (01:47 GMT) was recorded at a depth of 43 kilometers at sea, just 30 kilometers west of the capital of this island nation, according to the Institute of Geological Studies of the United States (USGS), triggering a tsunami warning.

A resident, Michael Thompson, told AFP that he had seen dead bodies in the capital. He reported collapsed bridges and landslides caused by the earthquake.

The United States embassy in Port Vila “has suffered considerable damage and is closed until further notice”, the American diplomatic mission in Papua New Guinea also indicated in a press release on X. According to the images published online by Mr. Thompson, the earthquake damaged this building, which also houses the French embassy and the New Zealand diplomatic representation.

According to images shared on social media, the earthquake toppled a concrete pillar, cracked a wall and distorted windows in the building.

– Tsunami alert lifted –

The floor “no longer exists. It’s completely flat. The three upper floors still stand” but have dropped in height, described Mr. Thompson.

“The telephone network has been cut” indicates Michael Thompson, who contacted AFP with a satellite telephone.

The earthquake led the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) to issue a tsunami alert, which has since been lifted. “Tsunami waves were observed,” the organization said in a bulletin, after initially fearing the arrival of waves up to a meter high along certain coasts of Vanuatu.

Earthquakes are common in Vanuatu, a low-lying archipelago of 320,000 people that straddles the Pacific seismic Ring of Fire, an arc of intense tectonic activity that stretches from Southeast Asia to the Pacific Basin.

Vanuatu is ranked among the countries most vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, storm damage, floods and tsunamis, according to the annual Global Risks Report.

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© Agence France-Presse