LOS ANGELES, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- A strong earthquake of 6.7 magnitude hit 77 km from Santo, Vanuatu, at 9:18 a.m. Aug. 8 local time (2218 GMT Aug. 7), the U.S. Geological Survey reported on Monday.

    No injuries or damage have been caused in the earthquake, which was measured at 80 km from Luganville, Vanuatu's second largest town on the island of Espiritu Santo.

    Residents in Luganville said they felt the quake, but it did not cause any damage and there had been no change in sea level, according to local reports.

    The depth of the quake near the Pacific island nation in the preliminary USGS report was 149 km.

    There is no risk of a tsunami at all, for the quake was too deep to generate any local or Pacific-wide tsunami, said the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

    Although it was a sizable earthquake, the epicenter was nearly 150 km deep, which was too deep to deform the seafloor, said Gerard Fryer, a geophysicist of the center.

    Earthquakes of this magnitude are relatively common in Vanuatu, which is part of the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire." A magnitude 6 earthquake rocked the tiny archipelago in April but caused no injuries, damage or local tsunami. Enditem