- - Magnitude 6.5 earthquake rocks Papua New Guinea

Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY December 22, 2025 at 10:57 PM

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A 6.5 magnitude earthquake rocked the island nation of Papua New Guinea on Monday morning, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

The quake struck at 10:31 a.m. UTC (5:31 a.m. ET) in the city of Goroka, the USGS reported.

Goroka is the capital of the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. It's located just north of Australia.

So far, no tsunami warning has been issued for the region.

A 6.5 magnitude earthquake rocked Papua New Guinea on Monday morning, December 22, 2025, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The quake struck at 10:31 a.m. UTC (5:31 a.m. ET), the USGS reported.

Goroka is "a thriving busy city" with about 25,000 residents, and a major coffee producing region of the country renown for its Goroka Show and Goroka Coffee Festival, according to information from UN Habitat.

As of early Monday, no injuries or damage had been immediately reported by local emergency officials.

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Earthquake registered nearly 68 miles deep

Data provided by USGS showed the earthquake was just over 68 miles deep.

1 / 10Top 10 largest earthquakes around the world since 1900Officials of the Banda Aceh prison examine the damage to a wall a day after an 8.6 magnitude earthquake hit the west coast of Indonesia in Banda Aceh on April 11, 2012.Earthquake magnitudes

Here are the effects of earthquakes of various magnitudes, according to Michigan Technological University:

Below 2.5: Generally not felt

2.5 to 5.4: Minor or no damage

5.5 to 6.0: Slight damage to buildings

6.1 to 6.9: Serious damage

7.0 to 7.9: Major earthquake, serious damage

8.0 or greater: Massive damage, can destroy communities

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Papua New Guinea struck by magnitude 6.5 earthquake

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