7.1-magnitude quake hits southern Indian Ocean: USGS

By AFP
05 December 2015
7.1-magnitude quake hits southern Indian Ocean: USGS
The setting sun and cloudy sky set the backdrop to the churning waves of the Indian Ocean at the popular recreation spot, the Galle Face Green in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 01 November 2015. Photo: M.A.Pushpa Kumara/EPA

A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck in the southern Indian Ocean Saturday, but there was no indication of a destructive tsunami and unlikely to be any casualties or damage, US seismologists said. 
The shallow tremor struck at 6:24 am (22:24 GMT Friday), around 3,100 kilometres (1,950 miles) southwest of the Australian city of Perth and 1,000 km from the uninhabited Heard Island and McDonald Islands, the US Geological Survey said. 
The epicentre was at the Southeast Indian ridge, a tectonic plate boundary located along the sea floor of the southern Indian Ocean. 
The Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre said there was currently no threat of a tsunami to Australia. 
(AFP)