Quake off New Caledonia triggers small tsunami waves, no damage reported

SYDNEY (Reuters) - A powerful undersea earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 struck on Wednesday near New Caledonia in the South Pacific, creating small tsunami waves, but there were no reports of damage, regional officials said.

The quake hit at a shallow depth of 27 km (17 miles) about 372 km (230 miles) east of Noumea, the capital, the U.S. Geological Survey said, estimating an initial magnitude of 7.