7.3-magnitude quake hits Vanuatu

PORT VILA, Vanuatu, Aug. 1 (UPI) — A major earthquake struck the multi-island nation of Vanuatu early Thursday, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reported.

The quake measured 7.3 on the Richter scale, large enough to cause significant damage over a wide area. But the center said there appeared to be no risk of a Pacific-wide tsunami.

Robert Cessaro, a geophysicist with the center, said the epicenter was deep in the Earth, about 90 miles below the surface. The quake was centered about 30 miles southeast of Santo, a central island in the archipelago.

It's a pretty good size, but it's deep and there is no tsunami threat, Cessaro told TVNZ. It's always out to sea.

Vanuatu is a group of more than 80 islands 1,100 miles east of Australia in the South Pacific.