SYDNEY, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Australian High Commission in Port Vila was evacuated during the 7.4-magnitude earthquake in Vanuatu on Tuesday, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported.
The Australian government was working to urgently confirm that all staff were safe, the ABC said.
The embassy building for Britain, the United States, France and New Zealand was damaged in the earthquake, the ABC said.
New Zealand's High Commission building, which is co-located with the U.S., French and British missions, had "sustained significant damage," a New Zealand foreign ministry spokesperson said in a statement.
There were communications outages across Vanuatu, the New Zealand statement added, while the Australian High Commission in Vanuatu said its communication systems had also been affected after the 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Vanuatu. ■