A powerful earthquake struck the Pacific nation of Vanuatu on Tuesday, destroying buildings in the capital Port Vila, including one used by foreign embassies. A witness told AFP about bodies lying in the city.

The magnitude 7.3 quake struck at 12:47 p.m. (0147 GMT) at a depth of 57 kilometers (35 miles), about 30 kilometers off the coast of Efate, Vanuatu’s main island, according to the US Geological Survey.

Minutes later, a magnitude 5.5 aftershock struck, followed by a series of weaker quakes – shaking the low-lying archipelago of 320,000 people located in the earthquake-prone Pacific Rim of Fire.

The ground floor of a four-story concrete block in Port Vila used by diplomatic missions of the United States, France, Britain, Australia and New Zealand was leveled, AFP photos showed.

U.S. and French embassy staff were safe, the two countries said. The United States has closed its embassy until further notice. France said its mission was “destroyed.”

“There are people in the city’s buildings. There were bodies lying there when we passed by,” local resident Michael Thompson told AFP by satellite phone after posting images of the destruction on social media.

A landslide on a road caught a bus, he said, “so there are obviously some deaths.”

The quake not only destroyed the first floor of the diplomatic building, but also caused at least two bridges to collapse and other buildings to collapse, Thompson said.

– “Completely flat” –

The ground floor of the embassy building “no longer exists,” he said.

“It’s just completely flat. The top three floors are still holding but have sunk.”

“If there was anyone in there at that point, they’re gone,” said Thompson, who runs a zipline adventure company in Vanuatu.

The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said there were unconfirmed reports of at least six deaths and an estimated 116,000 people could be affected by the worst effects of the quake.

The hospital in Port Vila was damaged and tents were set up outside to accommodate the influx of patients, it said. In addition, telecommunications were significantly disrupted and the two main water reservoirs were damaged.

“Immediate response efforts are underway as humanitarian partners and authorities work to overcome access and communication challenges,” it said in a situation report.

Some people injured in the quake were driven in flatbed trucks to a hospital in Port Vila, where others lay outside on stretchers or sat on plastic chairs, their arms and heads wrapped in bandages, images on public television VBTC showed.

Landslides sent tons of earth and large rocks tumbling down a steep hill above the international shipping terminal, images confirmed by AFP showed.

The port buildings did not appear to be damaged.

Australian and other regional airlines, including Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin Australia and Fiji Airways, have diverted or suspended flights – some citing reports of possible damage to facilities and the runway.

The quake disrupted most cell phone networks on the Pacific island, Thompson said.

– broken glass, debris –

“They are currently proceeding with a rescue operation. The support we need from abroad is medical evacuation and qualified rescue workers, people who can respond to earthquakes,” he said.

Video released by Thompson and confirmed by AFP showed uniformed rescuers working on a collapsed building, crushing cars and trucks parked below.

The city’s streets were littered with broken glass and other debris from broken buildings.

Nibhay Nand, a Sydney-based pharmacist with stores across the South Pacific, said staff in Port Vila reported that most of the store there had been “destroyed” and other buildings nearby had “collapsed”.

“We’re waiting for everyone to get online to know how devastating and traumatic this will be,” Nand told AFP.

A tsunami warning was issued after the quake, predicting waves of up to one meter (three feet) for some areas of Vanuatu, but it was soon lifted by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

Australia is ready to help, said Foreign Minister Penny Wong.

“Vanuatu is a family and we will always be there for each other in times of need,” she said in a statement.

According to the annual World Risk Report, Vanuatu is considered one of the countries most vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, storm damage, floods and tsunamis.

bur-djw/mtp/sn