Solomon Islands struck by 70 magnitude quake

An earthquake of 7.0 magnitude has struck the Solomon Islands in the Pacific Ocean, near the south-west region of Malango.

No injuries or deaths have been reported yet, but people in the capital Honiara reported significant shaking and tremors for around 20 seconds.

Amid immediate warnings of a tsunami, the prime minister's office advised locals to move to higher ground.

However, the islands' meteorological service later dropped the warning.

The quake hit just after 13:00 local time (02:00 GMT), at a depth of 15km (9miles) and 18km south-west of the coast according to the US Geological Survey.

An aftershock of magnitude 6.0 followed half an hour later, hitting at a depth of 10km and 31km off the coast.

It comes after an earthquake hit Indonesia's main island of Java, killing scores of people and injuring hundreds.

The Solomon Islands and Indonesia sit on the "ring of fire" area of tectonic activity in the Pacific.