The FINANCIAL — 5.2-magnitude earthquake was registered early on Monday off the coast of Vanuatu in southwestern Pacific, the U.S. Geological Survey reported on its website, according to RIA Novosti.
According to U.S. seismologists, the epicenter of the quake was located 200 km (125 miles) to the southwest of the nation's capital, Port Vila, at the depth of 10.4 km (6.5 miles).
No tsunami warning was issued following the tremor, and no casualties or damage reports have been received so far.
On December 25-26, two powerful quakes measuring 7.4 and 6.2 on Richter scale hit approximately the same area, causing tsunami fears among local residents.
Vanuatu is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, a region where 90% of the world's earthquakes and 80% of the world's largest earthquakes occur.
In 2010, major quakes hit the Indonesian island of Sumatra in the same region, killing over a thousand people, while the tsunamis in the wake of several tremors around the Pacific island nations of American Samoa, Western Samoa, and Tonga killed hundreds of people.
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