7.3 magnitude earthquake wreaks havoc, 14 dead...
A 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck Vanuatu, an island nation in the South Pacific Ocean, at around 7:15 am on tuesday (17 December), causing a lot of devastation in the country. The epicenter of the earthquake was 57 km deep inside the sea, 30 km from Vanuatu's main island Efate. So far, 14 people have lost their lives in Vanuatu and hundreds have been injured due to this earthquake. According to the US Geological Survey, several tremors have been felt in the area even after the initial earthquake. This includes a 5.5 magnitude tremor on wednesday (18 December) morning. local police said that a 'State of Emergency' has been imposed in Vanuatu. So that the movement of people can be restricted.
What did Australia's DFAT department say?
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said that it is aware of the presence of many Australians in the area. At the same time, Foreign minister Penny Wong said in a statement on tuesday (17 December) night that the earthquake has caused a lot of damage in Vanuatu and australia will send aid materials on Wednesday. Australia's 9 news Network reported that the United Nations Humanitarian office has said that the road leading to the airport and port in Port Vila has been damaged, which may affect the efforts to deliver aid.
Builts of other embassies including the US have been damaged
The buildings of the US and several other countries' embassies in Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu, have also suffered a lot of damage due to the earthquake. However, the full assessment of the damage caused by the earthquake has not been done yet. Let us tell you that after the earthquake, an alert was also issued regarding tsunami. Websites of government and other institutions were also closed. The Internet was shut down. Many buildings collapsed and many vehicles are also buried in their debris.
Vanuatu falls in an active earthquake zone
Vanuatu is a country of 80 small islands in the South Pacific region. It is located to the west of fiji and east of Australia. This entire area falls in an active earthquake zone and a large number of earthquakes and other natural disasters occur here.
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