BREAKING NEWS: Major quake felt in American Samoa this morning

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 occurred about 176 miles southwest of Savaii island in Samoa around 5:02a.m. on Wednesday, May 10 in American Samoa, according to a bulletin notice issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii.

And based on all available data, “there is not tsunami threat to American Samoa from this earthquake,” Center said and noted that some areas of the territory may have experienced very strong shaking.

The Center recommends that residents be observant and exercise normal caution if you are near or in the ocean. “Otherwise... no action is required,” it says.

Several residents took to social media early this morning posting about the strong earthquake, and the information was quickly re-posted by others. A Samoa News staffer, who lives in Tualauta county, said the shaking lasted at least a minute or two minutes and this was also confirmed by three residents, reached by phone minutes after the shaking stopped.

“I bit scary but at least there’s no tsunami,” said one resident, who noted that “my family members are just waking up now.”

This story will be updated online as new information becomes available.