Powerful quakes strike off Fiji, Tonga, but no tsunami risk

The US Geological Society said three successive quakes hit off Fiji and Tonga in the South Pacific. USGS MAP

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — A powerful 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Fiji on Sunday shortly after another hit off Tonga but there was no threat of a tsunami, US seismologists said.

The offshore quake occurred at 9:28 am (9:28 p.m. Saturday, Manila time), centered around 100 kilometers (62 miles) northeast of the Fijian island of Ndoi at a depth of 594 km, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said on its website.

It came 20 minutes after a 6.3-magnitude quake hit 124 kilometers northwest of Tonga.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said neither quake posed a tsunami threat.

In its preliminary impact assessment, the USGS said there was a low likelihood of casualties and damage./rga