Tsunami warning for Australia as quake hits Solomons

A tsunami warning has been issued for eastern Australia after an earthquake measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale hit the Solomon Islands.
The powerful quake struck at 6.40am AEST on Monday. Its epicentre was in the New Georgia Islands region, about 350km north west of the islands' capital, Honiara.

Queensland's Barrier Reef Islands, and Willis Island in the Coral Sea are thought to be particularly at risk from any large waves, but the warning also applies as far south as New South Wales and Tasmania.

Australia's National Meteorological and Oceanographic Centre said Cooktown in far north Queensland could be hit by 9.30am, with Cairns in the tsunami's path at around 9.50am, Gladstone 11.40am.

It says people should move out of the water and away from low-lying foreshore areas, and to be on alert for further advice from state emergency services.

Anyone who spots unusual sea activity is urged to move to higher ground immediately. Experts say the first wave to hit the coast may not be the strongest.

"If a tsunami comes through, you don't go back to low-lying ground after a wave," said climatologist Dr Jonathan Nott, from James Cook University in Cairns.

"People need to stay on high ground for at least the rest of the morning. Be aware and start to plan your evacuation and get the car ready," he said.

"An earthquake of this size has the potential to generate a destructive tsunami that can strike coastlines near the epicentre within minutes and more distant coastlines within hours," said the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre.

But Geoscience Australia said any tsunami - expected to measure between 10 and 20cm - would pose little risk to residents on the far north coast of Queensland.

There are reports residents in the state's north are being evacuated from coastal areas, and that elective surgery at Cairns Hospital, which is located close to the water's edge, has been cancelled.

"The Great Barrier Reef will offer some protection," said Dr Nott.

"But we know that tsunamis can go through gaps, and in the Townsville area there are gaps - we are not sure exactly as to the extent that the tsunami could get through."

"A tsunami warning has been issued for the north east coast of Australia," said Barry Hirshorn, of the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre.

"We are hearing rumours from the earthquake area that a tsunami has struck there, and that up to 20 houses have been washed away.

"We are anxiously checking water levels," he told Sunrise.

Tsunamis are triggered by the movement of sections of the earth's surface, known as plates. Waves generated by this under-sea friction can travel at 700 to 800km an hour.

Although they are more common in Western Australia, there is geological evidence of tsunamis hitting north eastern Australia in the past.