Sydney:

At least 14 people have been killed and hundreds more injured after a major earthquake struck Vanuatu on Tuesday.

The Red Cross reported the updated death count early Wednesday local time, citing government sources. Local media previously reported a death toll of seven.

The 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck Vanuatu’s capital city of Port Vila on Tuesday, causing widespread damage.

Several aftershocks hit the region following the initial quake, including one measuring a magnitude of 5.5 in the early hours of Wednesday morning, according to the US Geological Survey.

The Fiji-based head of the Red Cross in the Pacific, Katie Greenwood, said on social media that more than 200 people have been injured.

Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said it is aware of several Australians in the region but Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said on Wednesday that none are believed to have been injured.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong said in a statement on Tuesday night that the earthquake caused significant damage and said Australia would send aid on Wednesday.

Australia’s 9News network reported that the United Nations humanitarian office said access to the airport and seaport in Port Vila was severely limited due to road damage, which could affect efforts to deliver aid.

Clement Chipokolo from World Vision Vanuatu told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television that he expects the death count to rise due to the severity of the damage.

He said that damage to electricity and phone lines was hampering rescue and recovery efforts.

Vanuatu has been led by four Prime Ministers in four years and is due to go to the polls in January for a snap election. In November, Prime Minister Charlot Salwai asked President Nikenike Vurobaravu to dissolve Parliament so he did not have to face a no-confidence vote as his recent predecessors did.

But Vanuatu is accustomed to natural disasters, including havoc wrought by cyclones and volcanic eruptions. Its position on a subduction zone — where the Indo-Australia tectonic plate moves beneath the Pacific Plate — means earthquakes of greater than magnitude 6 are not uncommon and the country’s buildings are intended to withstand quake damage.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Vanuatu government websites were offline in the aftermath of the quake 
| Photo Credit: earthquake.usgs.gov

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Tuesday (December 17, 2024) just off the coast of Vanuatu in the South Pacific Ocean, the USGS said.

An earlier tsunami warning for the island nation was called off less than two hours after the quake.

The earthquake occurred at a depth of 57 km and was centered 30 km west of Port Vila, the largest city in Vanuatu, a group of 80 islands that is home to about 330,000 people. The jolt was followed by a magnitude 5.5 aftershock near the same location.

It was not immediately clear how much damage was caused, but a video posted on social media appeared to show crumpled buildings in Port Vila, including one that had collapsed onto cars. Another apparently depicted a building in the capital that houses some diplomatic missions to Vanuatu — including those of Britain, France and New Zealand — with some damage to its structure, including buckled windows and debris that had crumbled from walls to the ground.

Other photos and videos posted on Tuesday (December 17, 2024) showed items and shelves that had tumbled to the floors of shops and landslides that appeared to block some roads.

Vanuatu government websites were offline in the aftermath of the quake and phone numbers for the police and other public agencies did not connect. Social media channels for the country’s geohazards agency and the Prime Minister’s office have not been updated.

In the hours after the quake, the USGS said a tsunami threat had passed. The agency had earlier warned of waves of up to 1 meter (3 feet) above the tide level.

Authorities in Australia and New Zealand, both located in the Pacific Ocean, said there was no tsunami threat to their countries.

New Zealand’s Foreign Ministry said 37 New Zealanders were registered as being in Vanuatu. The ministry did not give details about the status of their nationals.

Katie Greenwood, a Fiji-based regional head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, posted on social platform X that trained Red Cross volunteers were on the ground in Vanuatu and ready to assist affected communities with pre-positioned relief items.