A state of emergency was declared today in Vanuatu, with a population of 320,000, as the island nation faced, at the same time, new cyclone and 6.5 magnitude earthquake.

The earthquake was recorded yesterday Thursday at 20:04 (Greece time) off the large island of Espiritu Santo, 82 kilometers southwest of the village of Port Olry, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). The focal depth was 10 kilometers from the seabed. It was followed by a magnitude 5.4 aftershock, according to the same source.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) said in a statement that it did not expect a tsunami to strike after the main quake.

Vanuatu is also being hit by Cyclone Kevin, prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency, government spokesman Joe Harry Carew told AFP.

Prime Minister Ismail Kalsakau called on local authorities to “assist communities in clean-up” and “prevent the spread of disease”, adding that he did not rule out declaring a state of natural disaster in the worst-hit areas.

No deaths have been reported at this stage, Red Cross Pacific spokesman Sonil Ram told AFP. However, hundreds of those affected remain gathered in reception centers in the capital Port Vila, according to police.

When the earthquake struck, many residents were trapped in their homes as strong winds brought by the cyclone uprooted trees and roofs of houses.

Two days earlier, Cyclone Judy had already tested Vanuatu, bringing winds of up to 200 kilometers per hour. Torrential rains flooded roads, while power went out and the telecommunications network was disrupted. Neither electricity nor communications have been fully restored so far.

Dickinson Tavy, secretary general of the Red Cross in Vanuatu, warned that widespread damage was likely.

“People in (Espiritu) Santo felt the earthquake but couldn’t go out to assess the damage because of the strong winds” of the cyclone, Mr Tevy explained.

“I was told that many people did not manage to sleep at night as the earthquake struck and the winds had already woken them up,” he added.

According to the ES official, in some sectors of the capital Port Vila, the electricity remains cut for two days.

At the beginning of January there was a magnitude 7 earthquake. In that case, emergency tsunami warnings had been issued.

Located on the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire,” where tectonic plates collide, Vanuatu often experiences intense seismic and volcanic activity. The island country is considered one of the most exposed to natural disasters—earthquakes, storms, floods, tsunamis…—in the whole world.