'Violent' earthquake strikes Vanuatu — at least one reported dead

A large earthquake has hit near Vanuatu this afternoon.

A local journalist reported from the Vanuatu capital of Port Vila that there had been at least one death. He said a triage centre had been set up outside the emergency ward of Vila Central Hospital. "I saw three people seriously injured on gurneys waiting treatment," Dan McGarry said.

The 7.3 magnitude earthquake, which struck at a depth of 57km, occurred 30km to the west of the capital Port Vila at 2.47pm, according to the US Geological Survey. The region was hit by a 5.5 magnitude aftershock six minutes later.

The extent of damage sustained by the Pacific Island was not immediately clear. Vanuatu government websites were offline in the aftermath of the quake.

A Red Cross spokesperson in Fiji said workers on the ground were reporting significant damage.

Video shared by the Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation showed crowds outside the Vila Central Hospital appearing to lift injured people onto stretchers.

New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had been in contact with the country's High Commissioner Nicci Simmonds in Vanuatu.

"Our High Commission building, which is co-located with the United States, the French and the United Kingdom, has sustained significant damage.

"We are in the process of contacting our staff to check they are safe."

There were 45 New Zealanders registered on SafeTravel as being in Vanuatu. The ministry said it expected there would be more who were not registered.

"New Zealanders there should follow the advice of authorities and be prepared for aftershocks."

Six aftershocks were recorded by the United States Geological Survey, measuring between 4.7 and 5.5 in the three hours after the initial quake.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was aware of communication outages in Vanutatu, and anyone in need of consular assistance should contact the emergency consular line on +64 99 20 20 20 as soon as they were able.

On X, the US Embassy in Papua New Guinea's Port Moseby said it is aware of the recent earthquake and damage to their embassy building in Vanuatu.

"The US Embassy in Port Vila has sustained considerable damage and is 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."

A video posted on social media appeared to show a building housing some diplomatic missions to Vanuatu — including those of New Zealand, Britain and France — with damage to the structure, including buckled window frames and debris that had crumbled from walls to the ground.

The National Emergency Management Agency and GNS Science said an assessment found there was no tsunami threat to New Zealand.

In a video posted to Facebook, Michael Thompson gave an account of the aftermath in Port Vila.

He said "there's multiple buildings that have come down around town".

"The American Embassy is collapsed... just pancaked. It's gone."

Thompson said he was able to access Facebook via Starlink.

"We need heavy equipment, and we need some experienced personnel. So if you've got a chance, please send that out and see if we can get some assistance down to Vanuatu, Port Vila, as quick as we can."

Civil Defence Minister Mark Mitchell said New Zealand authorities were watching the situation closely and stood ready to assist.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong also declared Australia was standing ready to help.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said he was "deeply concerned about the significant earthquake in Vanuatu, and the damage it has caused".

"Our thoughts are with the people and authorities of Vanuatu.

"We are monitoring the developing situation closely, and are in contact with the New Zealand High Commissioner to Vanuatu, Nicci Simmonds, and her team."

A Port Vila-based journalist said the initial earthquake was "violent" and lasted around 30 seconds.

Dan McGarry said on X that the 7.3 magnitude earthquake had a high frequency vertical shake which was unusual for the area.

"Thirty seconds in objective time. About a century in subjective time," he posted. "Violent, high frequency vertical shake, which is unusual for us in Vanuatu."

Later, McGarry posted drone footage showing the damage caused from the quake.

"Massive landslides near our international shipping terminal. A lot of digging ahead.

"This is going to impact our ability to respond," the post read.

Katie Greenwood, the Fiji-based head of the Asia-Pacific regional office for the Red Cross, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that the downtown area of Port Vila was full of large buildings and hotels.

“We haven’t heard at the moment about any casualties, but I will be shocked if we don’t hear that bad news coming through from Port Vila at some point,” she said.