Powerful quake strikes near remote south Atlantic islands

Washington: A powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck in the far south Atlantic ocean near the mostly uninhabited South Sandwich Islands region, the US Geological Survey said today.

The quake, which struck at 0120 IST, had an epicentre 152 kilometres (94 miles) northwest of Visokoi Island, and 1,968 kilometres (1220) miles east-southeast of Stanley, the main city on the Falkland Islands, the USGS which monitors quakes worldwide reported.

Despite the quake`s strength, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said that, based on historical data, "a destructive widespread tsunami threat does not exist."