M7.7 quake strikes S. Pacific, no Pacific-wide tsunami threat

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck in the vicinity of New Caledonia on Thursday, triggering a tsunami warning for countries and territories in the South Pacific but no destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is expected.The powerful quake, which struck at 12:20 a.m. local time at a location southeast of the Loyalty Islands, had a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometers, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said that "based on all available data a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected."But it warned that "hazardous tsunami waves from th…READ FULL ARTICLE