Residents in Papua New Guinea's second biggest city say the ground
shook strongly as a powerful earthquake struck off the country's north
coast.
The magnitude 7.0 quake occurred just after 5:00pm (local time).
The US Geological Survey says its epicentre was in the Bismarck Sea, 140 kilometres north of Lae, PNG's second biggest city.
Lae hotel manager Jason Andersen says it felt like two short, sharp quakes.
"Furniture was moving, windows were shaking, doors were banging," he said.
"A few people came out of their rooms a little bit concerned, but apart from that there was no damage or anything like that."
On social media people said they felt the quake as far away as the capital Port Moresby, 300 kilometres south of Lae.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said the quake did not generate a destructive tsunami.
