7.1-magnitude quake strikes off Guam: USGS

"A destructive tsunami was not generated because this earthquake is located too deep inside the earth," the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said.

Guam, the largest island in Micronesia with a population of 180,000, is no stranger to earthquakes, but tsunamis hit only rarely.

The largest quake in recent years hit in 1993. Although no one died in the 7.7-magnitude tremor, several people were injured and buildings suffered structural damage.

Geo-science Australia said Wednesday’s quake, which it estimated at a magnitude of 6.6, was not shallow enough to have generated a tsunami.

"It gave Guam a good shake but not enough to do much damage, no damage likely," seismologist Daniel Jaksa said.

Jaksa added that the Guam tremor hit about three minutes after a 6.0 magnitude quake struck off the Pacific nation of Vanuatu but the two were unrelated.

The Vanuatu quake, estimated at a depth of more than 200 kilometers, hit offshore about 150 kilometers north of the capital Port Vila but was not expected to trigger a tsunami.

"There's nothing unusual about earthquakes in this region," he said.

Vanuatu lies on the so-called ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’, a zone of frequent seismic activity caused by friction between shifting tectonic plates.

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