There are grave fears the number of people killed and injured by a magnitude-7.3 earthquake that struck near Vanuatu’s capital city of Port Vila could rise significantly.
WARNING: This story contains graphic content that could be distressing.
One person has reportedly died after the quake hit at 12:47pm AEDT on Tuesday, 30 kilometres west of the city.
The United States Geological Survey said it struck at a depth of 57km, although the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii reported the quake struck at 10km in depth.
Two aftershocks were then recorded in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Vanuatu. A magnitude-5 shock hit at a depth of 40km at 2:48pm AEDT, and a magnitude-5.3 quake followed half an hour later.
The US Tsunami Warning System has cancelled an initial tsunami warning for Vanuatu.
The Bureau of Meteorology said there was no tsunami threat to Australia.
Dan McGarry, a local journalist, said the earthquake was a “high-frequency shake” that lasted for about 30 seconds.
“It was a violent earthquake, more violent than any that I’ve seen in the last 21 years that I’ve been living in Vanuatu,” he said.
McGarry said earlier on Tuesday that a policeman had confirmed one death, but then reported in a post on X that he had been told that police officers feared there could be multiple deaths and many injured.
McGarry also said that a mass casualty triage centre was being established outside Port Vila Central Hospital’s emergency ward.
“There were several people there, three that I could see who were seriously injured, lying on gurneys, a great many others … walking around with minor injuries,” he said.
“There are buildings collapsed in the centre of town, so I’m quite certain that the casualty figure is going to rise.”
He said there were also “extensive landslides” on the road joining the Port Vila wharf to the city, and there were early reports that the runway at the city’s airport had been damaged.
Images of widespread damage have since emerged from Vanuatu, after large buildings collapsed in Port Vila and electricity and water were cut off in most of the capital.
Witnesses have reported major landslides near the capital.
An image posted to social media showed a landslide near Port Vila’s wharf.
One eyewitness named Mark, from Vanuatu Beverage Limited, described seeing a landslide at the Port Vila wharf.
“When it was shaking, I stood up next to my truck and I felt like it was jumping,” he told Vanuatu’s national broadcaster, VBTC.
“The truck seemed to be moving like that too, but the shaking threw me towards the fence … so I ran to the other side.
“I’m looking up the hill, and the land is coming down.
“I saw the entrance for Ifira [wharf company], the land came down and buried a big truck and containers. In front, there were trucks buried by stones.”
Video footage posted to social media shows damage to the building hosting the US and French embassies, and the United Kingdom and New Zealand High Commissions in Port Vila.
The US Embassy in Port Moresby issued a statement on X saying the embassy in Port Vila had sustained “considerable damage” and was closed until further notice.
“Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this earthquake and the US government will work closely with our partners in Vanuatu,” it said.
A video posted to social media showed the building with some damage to its structure, including buckled windows and debris that had crumbled from walls to the ground.
Other photos and videos showed items and shelves that had tumbled to the floors of shops and landslides that appeared to block some roads.
Another video shows a building on the city’s main street had collapsed and crushed vehicles underneath.
VBTC has also posted video from Port Vila Central Hospital showing ni-Vanuatu carrying people in their arms, and in the back of utes, to the building following the earthquake.
Agency tells coastal communities to leave homes
The Vanuatu National Disaster Management Office’s Fidel Zebeta on Tuesday afternoon said the country was having aftershocks following the major earthquake.
He told people living on coastal areas to evacuate to higher ground.
“Precautionary message going out to everyone, please move out from coastal areas to higher ground.”
Members of the public were reportedly heeding the advice and still moving to high ground in Port Vila by late afternoon.
The Australian High Commission in Port Vila was evacuated during the earthquake and the Australian government is still working to urgently confirm that all staff are safe.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the Australian government was closely monitoring the situation in Vanuatu following the earthquake.
“We stand ready to support Vanuatu, as the extent of the damage is assessed,” she said.
“Vanuatu is family and we will always be there in times of need.”
Senator Wong said Australians in Vanuatu caught up in the disaster should contact the consular emergency centre by calling +61 6261 3305.
“I don’t have any information about Australians who are injured,” she said.
“Obviously in Vanuatu there are Australians inevitably who either work there or are on holiday there.”
She said that Australians working with the high commission were safe but attempts were still being made to contact some locally engaged staff.
The Australian High Commissioner to Vanuatu, Max Willis, said in a post on X that Australia was “working closely with the Vanuatu Government on an assistance operation”.
New Zealand’s deputy prime minister Winston Peters said the NZ government was “deeply concerned” about the earthquake in Vanuatu.
“Our thoughts are with the people and authorities of Vanuatu,” he said in a post on X.
The Pacific Island nation is still recovering from the impact of three major cyclones in 2023.
With reporting by VBTC
This article was originally published by ABC Pacific and has been republished with permission.
