A Huge Magnitude 7.3 Earthquake Struck The Pacific Island Of Vanuatu, Flattening Buildings And Killing 14

A powerful magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Vanuatu on Tuesday Dec. 17, causing extensive damages and killing at least 14 people.

The earthquake struck near the Pacific Island country’s capital Port Vila at 12:47 pm local time, knocking out most of the internet connectivity.

Videos of the aftermath showed flattened buildings, debris crushing cars and landslides.

A CCTV video from a garage showed the exact moment the earthquake struck, toppling shelves and moving cars.

As of the morning of Wednesday Dec. 18, the Vanuatu government has reported at least 14 confirmed deaths and 200 people injured, according to the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) Pacific.

The UN estimates that at least 116,000 people have been affected by the earthquake.

The IFRC said that the earthquake had damaged an airstrip, electricity and communications, causing flight cancellations.

Cybersecurity monitoring organization Netblocks said that there was a “near-total loss of internet connectivity” across the country, according to the New York Times.

Authorities had issued a tsunami warning, but it was later lifted as there was no significant threat, according to the UN.

Search and rescue efforts to retrieve people from collapsed buildings have been ongoing.

Vanuatu’s prime minister has declared a state of emergency and curfew.

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