The Port Moresby Geophysical Observatory says this morning’s earthquake occurred as a result of fault movements in the Papuan Fold & Thrust Belt, which runs parallel to the axial mountain range of Papua New Guinea.
A magnitude 7.5 earthquake occurred at 03:44 am today, Monday 26 February, in the Southern Highlands region, about 30km South of Tari and about 40km North-West of Lake Kutubu.
The details are:
Time: 03.44 am
Location: 6.1 ° S, 142.7 ° E
Depth: 25 km
Mag: 7.5
“There is potential for significant damage from this earthquake because of the large magnitude and shallow depth of the event,” says the PMGO.
“A number of aftershocks have occurred, and more are likely in the coming days.
“The largest of the aftershocks so far is M5.5.”
However, the PMGO says there is little possibility that this earthquake would have generated a tsunami.