LATA, SOLOMON ISLANDS (BNO NEWS) -- A strong earthquake struck off the Santa Cruz Islands in the Pacific Ocean on late Monday afternoon, seismologists said, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

The 6.6-magnitude earthquake at 3:07 p.m. local time (0407 GMT) was centered about 75 kilometers (46 miles) west-northwest of Lata, the provincial capital of Temotu Province on Nendo island, which is part of the Santa Cruz Islands in the Solomon Islands. It struck about 38.9 kilometers (24.2 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The USGS estimated that approximately 14,000 people on islands in the region may have felt strong shaking, which would be unlikely to result in serious damage or casualties. Tens of thousands more may have felt weak to moderate shaking, but there were no initial reports of damage.

Both the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) and the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Center (JATWC) said there was no threat of a tsunami. "No destructive widespread tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data," PTWC said in a bulletin.

The Solomon Islands are on the so-called 'Pacific Ring of Fire', an arc of fault lines circling the Pacific Basin that is prone to frequent and large earthquakes. Volcanic eruptions also occur frequently in the region.

The Solomon Islands arc as a whole experiences a very high level of earthquake activity, and many tremors of magnitude 7 and larger have been recorded since the early decades of the twentieth century.

On April 2, 2007, a massive 8.1-magnitude earthquake struck close to the New Georgia Islands of the Solomon Islands. It unleashed a regional tsunami, killing 52 people and destroying more than 300 homes, schools and a hospital at Sasamunga. Two people were killed as a result of landslides, which were triggered by the earthquake.

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