Tsunami fears as powerful earthquake rips through islands on pacific r

The strong tremor struck the town of Panguna in Papua New Guinea today, according to seismologists. The earthquake, at 2.19 a.m. local time was 58 miles southwest of the town of Panguna on

Bougainville Island.  It struck about 19 miles deep, according to local reports. Islanders reported feeling strong shaking, but as yet, there have been no reports of damage or casualties in

the remote area.  The islands are on the highly volcanic and seismic Pacific ring of fire, meaning any quake of this scale prompts fears of a tsunami. However, initial reports from the

Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was currently no known tsunami threat from todays earthquake. Rescue efforts are now focused on the wreckage of the 17-storey building, where 117

people are listed as missing and are suspected to be buried deep under the rubble. The PTWC initially measured the earthquake at 6.7 before the United States Geological Survey (USGS)

downgraded it. Most structures on the islands are light and flexible, meaning major damage is rare. Express.co.uk reported today how there were fears of a tsunami off Druban, South Africa,

following a weaker earthquake there. And, it is feared more than 140 people were killed during a major earthquake which rocked Taiwan on Saturdxay at 4am local time. It was at the beginning

of the Lunar New Year holiday, with almost all the dead found in the toppled Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building in Tainan.