Magnitude-6.9 quake hits Atlantic Ocean off South America, no tsunami alert

USPA News - A powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck the South Atlantic Ocean near the uninhabited islands of the South Sandwich Islands far off South America on early Sunday morning, seismologists said, but no tsunami alerts were issued. The 6.9-magnitude earthquake at 5:52 a.m. local time (0752 GMT) on Sunday was centered in the ocean about 154 kilometers (96 miles) north-northwest of Visokoi Island, a small uninhabited island in the Traversay Island group of the South Sandwich Islands, which in turn is part of a British overseas territory that is known as the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI).

The powerful earthquake struck at a depth of approximately 16.5 kilometers (10.3 miles), making it a shallow earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). It said the tremor was followed by two moderate aftershocks about 30 minutes later and a third about 4.5 hours later, all measuring 5.1. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, which initially measured the earthquake at a much greater 7.2, said there was no threat of a destructive, widespread tsunami. It added that there was a "small possibility" of a local or regional tsunami that could have affected the South Sandwich Islands, but no tsunami alerts were issued and no unusual waves were detected in the following hours. Because Sunday`s earthquake struck an uninhabited region, no damage or casualties were expected.