Powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake rips through Vanuatu 

A powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake has struck near Vanuatu, sparking concerns of a tsunami in the Pacific.

The earthquake struck Erromago, an island in the Vanuatu archipelago roughly 135 kilometres south of the capital city of Port Vila, at 10.10am local time on Thursday.

There were initial fears the earthquake could result in a damaging tsunami, but its depth of 200 kilometres meant there were no threats. 

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center confirmed there were no tsunami threats.

‘Based on all available data a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected and there is no tsunami threat to Hawaii,’ the centre said.

It marks the fourth serious earthquake across the globe in the last 24 hours.

Vanuatu, which has a population of 270,000, is made up of 80 nations scattered across 1,300 kilometres of ocean. 

The island country sits directly on top of the ‘Ring of Fire’, a place where tectonic plates collide and move causing almost 90 per cent of the world’s earthquakes.