On Thursday afternoon, a strong earthquake shook Vanuatu, a small South Pacific island located about 1,100 miles from northern Australia. However, officials report that there was no major causalities.
The undersea earthquake measured at a 6.1 magnitude and only 10 km deep. It struck about 65 miles west off the coast of Port Vila, which is the capital of Vanuatu, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. There was no immediate tsunami warning or reports of damage.
A reporter at the Trading Post newspaper named Godwin Ligo said that his office building in the capital Port Vila started to shake and sway during the quake, though he wasn't aware if it caused any major problems.
The U.S. Geological Survey also indicated that Vanuatu is on the "Ring of Fire," a seismically active region of earthquake and volcanic zones around the Pacific Rim. On average, this area experiences three 7.0 magnitude quakes per year, and it's where most of the world's seismic activity occurs.
Though Thursday's quake in Vanuatu didn't cause any causalities, the magnitude 8.0 earthquke that struck the nearby Solomon Islands killed six people earlier this month as it also caused a small tsunami.
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