A magnitude 5.5 earthquake strikes northern Vanuatu in the South Pacific

An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 has shaken this Wednesday the waters of the north of the Vanuatu archipelago, in the South Pacific, without the authorities having reported victims or material damage or issued a tsunami warning.

The tremor occurred 10 kilometers deep and 81 kilometers southeast of the city of Sola, on the northern island of Vanua Lava and with about 1,200 inhabitants, reported the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which records seismic activity throughout the world.

The quake occurred in the same region as another 6.4-magnitude, 10-kilometer-deep quake occurred Wednesday 104 kilometers southeast of Sola.

Vanuatu is located near the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire and the submarine volcanoes of the Lau Basin, which is why it regularly registers shocks of seismic origin.

The Republic of Vanuatu, with a population of around 250,000, is made up of an archipelago of volcanic origin.