Tsunami warning issued as magnitude 7.5 earthquake hits off PNG

5 May10:38 AM

[SYDNEY] A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck off Papua New Guinea on Tuesday, triggering a tsunami warning for coastal communities.

The quake hit 137 kilometres south of Kokopo, the capital of East New Britain province that's home to about 26,000 people, according to the US Geological Survey. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said hazardous waves were possible for coasts within 300 km of the epicenter.

Papua New Guinea is in a zone where the Pacific, Indo- Australian and Philippine plates meet and constantly shift, sometimes causing earthquakes, some of them producing tsunamis.

BLOOMBERG