Magnitude 6.7 earthquake strikes off coast of Papua New Guinea

A magnitude 6.7 earthquake rattled Papua New Guinea on Friday, the United States Geological Survey said.

The USGS said the quake was 51 kilometres (31.6 miles) deep and located 123.2 kilometres from the closest town of Kokopo.

A magnitude 6.6 earthquake rattled Papua New Guinea on Friday, the United States Geological Survey said (File)

The Papua New Guinea National Disaster Centre said it was assessing for damage.

There were no tsunami warnings issued following the earthquake.

Earthquakes are common in Papua New Guinea, which sits on top of the seismic "Ring of Fire" -- an arc of intense tectonic activity that stretches through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.

Although they seldom cause widespread damage in sparsely populated areas, they can trigger destructive landslides.