Strong quake hits Russia’s far east but no major damage reported

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (Reuters) – A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck off the far eastern coast of Russia on Monday, but Russia’s emergency ministry said there had been no tsunami and no immediate casualties or destruction.

The earthquake struck about 44 km (27 miles) south of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on Russia’s Pacific coast at a depth of 100 km, according to the emergency ministry.

Footage posted by media from the Kamchatka peninsula, about 6,800 km east of Moscow, showed some cracks in buildings and bottles smashed in supermarkets after being dislodged by the quake, but no major immediate structural damage.

“Operational groups of rescuers and firefighters are inspecting buildings,” the emergency ministry said. “According to preliminary information, there are no casualties and destruction.”

The Kamchatka Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Geophysical Survey said the magnitude of the quake was 6.9.

The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) initially said the quake’s magnitude was 6.6.

The U.S. Tsunami Warning System said there was no tsunami warning after the quake.

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge in Moscow, additional reporting by Yana Gaur in Bengaluru and Reuters in Russia; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)