Another strong earthquake has struck the Vanuatu islands, following yesterday's tremor that is reported to have killed at least 14 people, with more trapped inside buildings.
The 6.1 quake on Wednesday was at a depth of 10km, the German Research Center for Geosciences said.
The death toll from Tuesday's 7.3 quake was expected to rise because concrete buildings have collapsed with people inside in the capital Port Vila.
Vanuatu is a low-lying archipelago of some 80 islands and is located in a seismically active area.
International Federation of Red Cross Pacific head of delegation Katie Greenwood posted on X that the Vanuatu government was reporting 14 confirmed fatalities and 200 people were treated for injuries at the main hospital in Port Vila.
Rescue efforts to retrieve people trapped by fallen buildings and rubble have continued overnight.
Pacific neighbour New Zealand has offered assistance. A military surveillance plane was due to fly above Vanuatu this morning to help assess the damage and a search and rescue team and relief supplies would be sent, Foreign Minister Winston Peters confirmed this morning.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimated 116,000 people had been affected by the quake.
Vanuatu has been experiencing aftershocks following Tuesday's quake, the ABC reported.
Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong said there was significant damage and Australia was preparing to deploy assistance, including urban search and rescue and emergency medical teams on Wednesday.
Port Vila's international airport was closed, Vanuatu's High Commission in Canberra said.
The structure of the hospital in Port Vila was affected, with the operating theatre not functioning and triage tents set up outside to manage the influx of patients, it said in a statement.
Authorities were unable to communicate with the National Disaster Management Office until Tuesday evening, when Starlink satellite services were provided, it said.
- additional reporting Reuters
