Inp.polri.go.id - Jakarta.  The Indonesian Embassy in Canberra is working to contact Indonesian citizens  in Vanuatu after a 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck the Pacific nation on Tuesday morning (17/12/2024).

Efforts to reach officials and contact points in Vanuatu have been challenging due to disrupted telecommunications in the capital, Port Vila, said Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Hartyo Harkomoyo.

There are 48 Indonesians in Vanuatu, comprising 47 crew members and one person married to a local resident, according to antaranews.com.

The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) confirmed that the earthquake triggered a local tsunami but posed no threat to Indonesia. The quake, caused by subduction activity, occurred at a depth of 50 kilometers, 47 kilometers southwest of Port Vila.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reported wave heights of 0.25 meters in Port Vila, 0.19 meters in Lennakel, and 0.13 meters in Luganville.

(mg/inp/pr/nm)