Magnitude 7.3 earthquake causes widespread damage in Pacific island nation of Vanuatu: NPR

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — A powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Vanuatu on Tuesday, causing widespread destruction in the South Pacific island nation as injured people began arriving at hospitals and there were also unconfirmed reports of casualties.

The tsunami warning was lifted less than two hours after the earthquake occurred. After several hours, with communications cut off and official information lacking, eyewitness accounts of casualties began to emerge through social media and intermittent phone calls.

The quake struck at a depth of 57 kilometers (35 miles) and was centered 30 kilometers (18 miles) west of Port Vila, Vanuatu’s largest city on 80 islands and home to about 330,000 people. The quake was followed by a magnitude 5.5 aftershock near the same location, and the shaking continued into the afternoon and evening local time.

The extent of the damage was not immediately clear as phone lines and government websites remained down. In the first official information published on social media hours after the earthquake, the Geodisaster Bureau announced that its monitoring system was offline due to a power outage.

Residents were asked to stay away from the coastline for at least 24 hours and until tsunami and earthquake monitoring systems were activated again. No confirmed reports of damage or casualties have been provided, but accounts detailing widespread destruction have been glossed over on social media and interviews.

Dan McGarry, a Port Vila-based journalist, told The Associated Press that he heard from police outside Vila Central Hospital that one person had died in the earthquake. Mr McGarry said he saw three people on stretchers “visibly in pain”.

Doctors said they were working “as quickly as possible” at a triage center outside the emergency ward. But the country is not prepared for mass casualties, McGarry said.

A video shared by Vanuatu Broadcasting Television showed a crowd outside the hospital. Telephone numbers for police, hospitals, and other public institutions could not be reached.

Testimonies from people trapped inside collapsed buildings could not be immediately confirmed. Videos posted on social media showed crumpled buildings in Port Vila, including one collapsed onto a car. A Fiji Red Cross spokeswoman said the aid agency’s Vanuatu office chief had reported extensive damage before communications were cut off.

New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the building in Port Vila, which houses several diplomatic missions, including those of the United States, United Kingdom, France and New Zealand, suffered significant damage. A spokeswoman said officials were still working on accounting for New Zealand High Commission staff.

According to the U.S. Embassy’s Facebook page, the embassy is closed until further notice.

Video posted on social media showed some damage to the building’s structure, including buckled windows and debris falling from walls to the ground. Other photos and videos showed products and shelves on store floors and a landslide that appeared to block some roads.

Fiji-based Red Cross Asia Pacific regional director Katie Greenwood told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that downtown Port Vila was full of large buildings and hotels.

“I haven’t heard of any casualties at this point, but I would be shocked if we don’t hear bad news from Port Vila at some point,” she said.

Mr McGarry said a “massive landslide” at the international shipping terminal was likely to hamper the country’s recovery. The airport runway was also damaged.

Vanuatu is located on a subduction zone where the India-Australia plate moves beneath the Pacific plate, so earthquakes over magnitude 6 are not uncommon, and the country’s buildings are designed to withstand earthquake damage. .

“It could have been much worse,” McGarry said. But he said this was “unexpectedly” the most severe he had experienced in his 21 years in Vanuatu.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters that the Australian High Commission staff were safe.

“We will provide whatever assistance is needed,” she said. “I say to the people of Vanuatu: you are family and Australia is here to help.”

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said 45 New Zealanders were registered in Vanuatu. Mr Peters said the government was “deeply concerned” about the situation on the ground.

Reports of widespread destruction began appearing on social media hours after the quake, although phone lines and government websites remained down and official channels were not updating.