On Saturday (20 May), the Loyalty Islands of New Caledonia were rocked by a series of powerful earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 6.5 to 7.4 on the Richter Scale.
The 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck the southeast portion of the islands, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
Just minutes afterward, the bureau tweeted that another 7.1 magnitude earthquake had struck the area. Within approximately 45 minutes.