Papua New Guinea tsunami warning over horror 3m tall waves after huge earthquake

A tsunami warning has been issued for after a strong magnitude 6.9 , according to the US Geological Survey.

The quake struck the Pacific island nation at a depth of six miles. It was centred 194 km (120 miles) east of the town of Kimbe, on the island of New Britain.

The USGS issued awarning for waves of one to three metres along the Papua New Guinea coastline after the temblor on Saturday morning local time. A caution about smaller waves of 0.3 m was issued for nearby Solomon Islands. There were no immediate reports of damage.

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Just over 500,000 people live on the island of New Britain.

Australia's Bureau of Meteorology in Melbourne said there was no tsunami threat to the country, which is Papua New Guinea's closest neighbour. No warning was issued for New Zealand.

Papua New Guinea sits on the Pacific 'Ring of Fire', an arc of seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean where much of the world's earthquake and volcanic activity occurs.

The faultline has been responsible for multiple deadly earthquakes in the past, including the 1960 Valdivia earthquake in Chile, the 1964 Alaska earthquake, and the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan.

It comes as authorities in continued to search for survivors in the rubble left by a massive earthquake last week.

The magnitude 7.7 quake toppled thousands of buildings, collapsed bridges and buckled roads. The death toll rose to 3,085 on Thursday, with more than 4,700 people injured and over 300 missing.

On Friday, the U.N.'s Human Rights Office accused Myanmar's military government of continuing to attacks on opposition groups and civilian targets in the country amid ongoing aid efforts.

The agency there were more than 60 attacks after the earthquake, including 16 since the military announced a temporary ceasefire on Wednesday. Myanmar has been gripped by a bloody civil war since a military junta came to power three years ago.

The earthquake also killed at least 22 people in Bangkok, mostly due to the collapse of a high-rise building under construction.

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