Tsunami Warning Map: Earthquake Near Solomon Islands Could Generate Waves In Pacific Ocean Near New Zealand, Hawaii

A tsunami warning was issued after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake hit off the coast of the Solomon Islands in the Pacific Ocean early Friday. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center warned of possible hazardous waves along the coasts of the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Nauru, New Caledonia, Tuvalu and Kosrae. The New Zealand Ministry of Civil Defense and Emergency Management issued a tsunami threat for coastal areas of New Zealand, as well.

"Already there [is] information coming in from Makira as well as parts of Solomon Islands not within the tsunami threat area, [that] confirm some dwellings, houses, etc, have been collapsed due to the shaking," said Loti Yates of the National Disaster Management Office in Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands.

The earthquake struck 30 miles off the coast of the islands at 4:38 a.m. local time. A magnitude 5.5 aftershock hit the area about 25 minutes after. Residents in the area were evacuated and urged to move to higher ground.

Authorities were investigating whether or not there was a tsunami threat to Hawaii when the original alert was issued but did not expect to see waves on the west coast of the U.S. or near Alaska.

The Solomon Island's earthquake was the second of the day to hit the Pacific. A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck 100 miles off the coast of Northern California earlier in the day, though no significant impact was felt from the quake and no tsunami warning was issued.

The Solomon Islands are especially vulnerable to earthquakes and tsunamis because they are low-lying islands near a number of seismically active plates, according to the Incorporated Institutes for Seismology.

In February 2013, a magnitude 8.0 hit the South Pacific, generating a tsunami that hit the Solomon Islands and killed six people. The waves and earthquake destroyed nearly 100 homes in the area and flooded the airport, preventing rescue efforts. The waves from the tsunami hit as far away as Japan.

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