NEW YORK, Nov 28 (NNN-XINHUA) – The United States Geological Survey reported a magnitude 6.5 quake in Papua New Guinea, near Wewak, East Sepik Province.
The earthquake hit at 7:46 am local time today, at a shallow depth of 12.3 km. The exact magnitude, epicentre, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes, as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
Other agencies reporting the same quake include Geoscience Australia (GeoAu) at magnitude 6.5, France’s Réseau National de Surveillance Sismique (RéNaSS) at magnitude 6.2, and the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) at magnitude 6.5.
Generally quakes of this magnitude are recorded by more than one agency and the results can vary, with subsequent reports that come in after the first one often showing more accuracy.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been widely felt by almost everyone in the area of the epicentre. It might have caused light to moderate damage.
Moderate shaking probably occurred in Wewak (pop. 18,200) located 43 km from the epicentre, and Angoram (pop. 1,600) 56 km away.– NNN-XINHUA
