RELIEF workers are scrambling to reach quake-ravaged villages in the Solomon Islands, with “unusual seismic activity” sighted as strong aftershocks continue to jolt the remote Pacific region.

Pungent steam was reportedly rising from cracks in the ground three days after a deadly 8.0-magnitude earthquake triggered a tsunami in the region, killing at least 13 people, destroying villages and leaving thousands homeless.

Volcano and seismic specialists were also being called on to analyse the significance of the steam rising from the ground in parts of the Santa Cruz Islands.

“There’s a lot of unusual seismic activity,” a spokeswoman for the National Disaster Management Office told AFP from Honiara.

“The earth is clearly doing something there. We are asking for scientific expertise to provide us with some information about what they think might be happening. There are cracks and some steam and water coming out.”

From this link. [link to www.theaustralian.com.au]