A strong earthquake with a magnitude of up to 7.0 hit near the South Pacific nation of Samoa on Thursday and triggered a small tsunami but there were no reports of damage, officials said.
The centre of the quake was between Samoa, Tonga and American Samoa and at least 250km from the nearest major populated centres.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said a tide gauge in Pago Pago, American Samoa's harbourside capital, had measured the wave at 8 cm. Australian seismologists said Samoa was lucky the quake was not bigger and that it was a long way from populated centres.
Keni Lesa, editor of the Samoa Observer newspaper, said the quake was felt across the Samoan capital, Apia, when it hit early in the evening but no unusual wave activity had been experienced.
"It was definitely felt here for at least 30 seconds or more," Lesa told Reuters by telephone from Apia about two hours after the quake struck.
"I doubt there would be any damage," he said.
A spokeswoman for Tonga's main hospital in the capital, Nuku'alofa, said she had not felt the quake.
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