An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 occurred early this evening 92 km southeast of Neiafu, Tonga, the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) reported.
The quake hit at a shallow depth of 10 km beneath the epicenter near Neiafu, Vava‘u, Tonga, early evening on Saturday 5 December 2020 at 7.43 pm local time.
The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
A second report was later issued by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which listed it as a magnitude 5.5 earthquake as well.
Other agencies reporting the same quake include Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) at magnitude 5.2, and European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) at magnitude 5.1.
Generally quakes of this magnitude are recorded by more than one agency and the results can vary, with subsequent reports that come in after the first one often showing more accuracy.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Neiafu (pop. 4,300) located 92 km from the epicenter.
Photo supplied