[h=3]By KAYLENE HONG[/h]A magnitude-8 earthquake struck Wednesday off the Solomon Islands, generating a tsunami that may have been destructive along coasts near the epicenter, U.S. watch centers said.
A wave measuring 91 centimeters (3 feet) reached the Solomon Islands after the quake, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.
The tsunami could be a threat to more distant coasts, and the center advised authorities to take appropriate action in response to the possibility.
The magnitude-8 quake occurred at 12:12 p.m. local time at a depth of five kilometers (about 3 miles) off the Santa Cruz Islands, which are part of the Solomon Islands nation, about 347 kilometers east of Kira Kira, Solomon Islands, according to an earlier bulletin issued by the U.S. Geological Survey.
A magnitude-6.3 quake had struck minutes earlier in the same area. There were at least two aftershocks measuring above magnitude-6 following the larger quake.
A tsunami warning is still in effect for islands in the Pacific including Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea, with a tsunami watch for other areas including Marshall Islands and Samoa.
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A wave measuring 91 centimeters (3 feet) reached the Solomon Islands after the quake, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.
The tsunami could be a threat to more distant coasts, and the center advised authorities to take appropriate action in response to the possibility.
The magnitude-8 quake occurred at 12:12 p.m. local time at a depth of five kilometers (about 3 miles) off the Santa Cruz Islands, which are part of the Solomon Islands nation, about 347 kilometers east of Kira Kira, Solomon Islands, according to an earlier bulletin issued by the U.S. Geological Survey.
A magnitude-6.3 quake had struck minutes earlier in the same area. There were at least two aftershocks measuring above magnitude-6 following the larger quake.
A tsunami warning is still in effect for islands in the Pacific including Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea, with a tsunami watch for other areas including Marshall Islands and Samoa.
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