The US Geological Survey says a 7.6 magnitude earthquake occurred near Tonga

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck near Tonga in the South Pacific on Tuesday, prompting coastal evacuations but no broader tsunami warnings issued.

The US Geological Survey said the quake occurred early Tuesday evening local time at a depth of about 237 kilometers (148 miles). Earthquakes that occur at shallow depths are felt more strongly at the surface.

The epicenter of the tremor was at sea, 153 kilometers west of Neafu, the second largest city in the island nation.

There were no immediate reports of damage.

Tonga’s National Disaster Risk Management Office warned everyone in the low-lying island nation to immediately move to higher ground or inland.

A post on the office’s Facebook page said people should avoid beaches, coasts and low-lying coastal areas until the area is completely evacuated.

The US Geological Survey did not issue a tsunami warning for the area, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said in a bulletin that there was no tsunami threat because the quake “was located very deep into the ground.”

Tonga is an archipelago in Polynesia made up of 171 islands and has a population of just over 100,000 people, most of whom live on the main island of Tongatapu. The epicenter of Tuesday’s earthquake was near the Vava’u group of islands.

One person who answered the phone at the beachfront Tanoa International Dateline Hotel in Nuku’alofa, located in Tongatapu, said she was not aware of any damage.

“The entire building shook. There was no other damage. Everything was fine,” she said.

Tonga Police did not immediately respond to an email request for comment.

Tonga is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, the arc of seismic faults where most of the world’s earthquakes and volcanic activity occur. A tsunami caused by a volcanic eruption in 2022 killed three people.

The island nation is located about 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) northeast of New Zealand, where disaster officials said Tuesday there was no tsunami threat in the country.

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Associated Press writer Rod McGuirk contributed from Melbourne, Australia.

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