US seismologists report 6.0 earthquake near Samoa

WASHINGTON — An earthquake with magnitude 6.0 has struck in the Pacific near Samoa, the U.S. Geological Survey reports.

The government seismologists said the quake was at a depth of 6.2 miles and occurred just after 2 p.m. EDT.

Its epicenter was 165 miles northwest of Hihifo, Tonga, and 1,630 miles north northeast of Auckland, New Zealand.

Gerard Fryer, a geophysicist at the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, says there is no threat of a tsunami. He says the quake's magnitude did not exceed the threshold for a tsunami.

The USGS announcement did not mention whether a tsunami was expected. An earthquake and a following tsunami killed more than 180 people on Samoa, American Samoa and nearby islands on Sept. 29. That earthquake was at 8.3 magnitude.