Very strong magnitude 7.1 quake hits 71 km northwest of Luganville, Vanuatu in the evening
7.1 quake 18 Aug 9:10 pm (GMT +11)

An intermediate magnitude 7.1 earthquake was reported in the evening near Luganville, Sanma Province, Vanuatu.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the quake hit on Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 9:10 pm local time at an intermediate depth of 84 km. 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.
Our monitoring service identified a second report from Geoscience Australia (GeoAu) which listed the quake at magnitude 6.7. Other agencies reporting the same quake include France's Réseau National de Surveillance Sismique (RéNaSS) at magnitude 6.4, Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency at magnitude 6.8, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) at magnitude 6.8, and the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) at magnitude 6.7.
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 have been widely felt by almost everyone in the area of the epicenter. It might have caused light to moderate damage.
Moderate shaking probably occurred in Port-Olry (pop. 2,000) located 20 km from the epicenter, Luganville (pop. 13,400) 71 km away, Sola (pop. 1,200) 134 km away, Norsup (pop. 3,000) 137 km away, and Lakatoro (pop. 710) 141 km away.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you’re in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.


Earthquake data:
Date & time: 18 Aug 2021 9:10 pm (GMT +11) local time (18 Aug 2021 10:10 GMT)
Magnitude: 7.1
Depth: 84.0 km
Epicenterlatitude / longitude: 14.92°S / 166.94°E (Coral Sea, Vanuatu)
Primary data source: USGS
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquake/news/138789/Very-strong-magnitude-71-quake-hits-71-km-northwest-of-Luganville-Vanuatu-in-the-evening-.html