No tsunami threat after 8.2 magnitude earthquake near Fiji
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/KO45EI76FRBYLHHBPEW7Z6MBMA.jpg)
Updated: Aug. 18, 2018 at 3:46 PM HST
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/VRF5XYBLYNEJ3FJ7K4OJLOC7WA.jpg)
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - There is no tsunami threat to Hawaii after a strong earthquake in the South Pacific basin.
Officials at the National Tsunami Warning Center said the quake struck the Fiji Islands region Saturday afternoon, but no Pacific-wide tsunami threat was generated.
It initially registered as a 7.9-magnitude earthquake, but since the original alert, the USGS has upgraded the magnitude of the earthquake to an 8.2.
The quake happened around 2:20 p.m. Saturday near the Fijian island of Ndoi.
The NTWC said small, non-destructive waves were observed near the area. But the PTWC says the quake was at a depth too deep to generate and strong tsunami waves.
This story will be updated.
Copyright 2018 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.