The earth has shaken a lot in recent hours in New Caledonia: fifteen times in the last twenty-four hours, to be precise. These earthquakes, whose magnitude is between 4.7 and 7 on the Richter scale, took place in the Loyalty Islands archipelago, an area located about 300 kilometers south-east of Maré and at a depth around 10 kilometers, according to data from the website of the USGS (United States Institute of Geological Studies). No damage was reported.
In a press release released this Friday morning, the Civil Security Department of New Caledonia reported an earthquake of magnitude 6.8 which occurred at 6:58 a.m. local time. “Given its location, its depth and its magnitude, no risk of a tsunami has been proven, however abnormal movements of the sea could be observed”, she specified, however calling on the population “to caution, especially along the coast.
“This place is known to be seismically active. It’s a big confrontation zone between the tectonic plates of Australia on one side and the Pacific on the other. So it’s not a surprise, ”declared in New Caledonia the 1st, Jérôme Aucan, oceanographer at the Pacific Community.