Moderate 5.8 quake shakes Tonga

A moderate 5.8 quake hit off Tonga today but there were no immediate reports of damage in the South Pacific island nation.

Nuku`alofa: A moderate 5.8 quake hit off Tonga today, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, but there were no immediate reports of damage in the South Pacific
island nation.

The quake struck at 2:27 am (1327 GMT today) 155 kilometres (95 miles) east-northeast of the capital Nuku`Alofa at a relatively shallow depth of 9.5 kilometres, the USGS
said.

Tonga, almost 2,000 kilometres northeast of New Zealand, lies on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", where continental plates collide causing frequent volcanic and
seismic activity.

Nine people died in Tonga in an earthquake-triggered tsunami in October 2009 that also killed 143 people in Samoa.

Bureau Report