A large earthquake struck off the coast of Papua New Guinea in the South Pacific but did not cause a Pacific-wide tsunami, officials said Thursday.

The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 6.7, was centered 64 miles east of Lae, New Guinea at a depth of about 28 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It struck at 1:35 p.m. today near the epicenter (5:35 p.m. Thursday in Hawaii.)

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Ewa Beach issued a bulletin saying that no widespread tsunami threat exists, but that earthquakes of this size can generate local tsunamis along coasts near the epicenter.