2 Strong Quakes in Pacific Region, No Tsunami Alerts
WELLINGTON, New Zealand: A strong magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred under the sea near Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, seismologists said, but there were no immediate reports of injury or damage.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami alert following the quake.
The temblor, centered 114 miles (184 kilometers) southeast of the capital, Honiara, at a depth of 56 miles (89 kilometers), struck at 2:20 a.m. Wednesday (1620 GMT Tuesday), the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
A magnitude 8.0 quake in April last year triggered a tsunami that killed more than 50 people in western Solomon Islands and displaced thousands of people.
Also Wednesday, a separate magnitude 6.1 quake struck near the Flores island region of Indonesia, but no tsunami alert was issued.
The quake struck 106 miles (170 kilometers) northwest of the town of Endes on Flores at 1:31am (1731 GMT Tuesday), the U.S. Geological Survey said.
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The six mile (10 kilometer) deep quake came hours after a moderate 5.2 magnitude quake hit off Indonesia's Sumatra island further to the northwest, the U.S.G.S. also said.