6.0-magnitude earthquake jolts Papua New Guinea

A 6.0-magnitude earthquake jolted Papua New Guinea on Monday, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said adding no Pacific-wide tsunami warning was issued.

The USGS said the tremor hit at a depth of five kilometres near the sparsely-populated East New Britain region, some 210 kilometres southeast of the town of Kokopo.

However, a tsunami warning was not issued by the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

Papua New Guinea lies on the 4,000-kilometre-long Pacific Australia plate and earthquakes are common in the region.

It forms part of the “Ring of Fire”, a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ: NASA's heartbeat detector FINDER helps in disaster relief after Mexico's 7.1-magnitude earthquake