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Venezuela has been hit by a magnitude 7.3 earthquake which has affected the northern part of the country.

The quake had originally measured 6.7 magnitude but was later upgraded to 7.3 by the United States Geological Survey.

The earthquake centered near the town of Guiria and was felt as far away as the capital, Caracas, where it shook buildings, witnesses said.

No deaths or major damage has been reported by Venezuelan authorities and it appears the earthquake's depth - 76.5 miles (123 km) below the surface - appears to have mitigated the destruction.

Earlier, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued an alert over the seismic event, saying that "hazardous waves" were possible 300km from the epicentre, but later rescinded the warning.

Videos posted to social media show residents screaming and shouting as the terrifying tremors rocked buildings and streets.

(Image: REUTERS)

The epicentre is around 100km from Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago's capital city.

Part of the Port of Spain's Trinity Cathedral collapsed under the powerful vibrations, as bricks collapsed onto a car parked on the ground below.

Tremors were reported in Caribbean islands some distance away, including Grenada and Barbados, while one witness claimed he felt the tremors 300km away in Oistins, a resort near Barbados's capital.

He said: "We were sat outside by our room and felt the ground moving gently for several seconds. The couple on the balcony in the room above us said they had felt it too"

Were you involved in the earthquake? Send video to webnews@trinitymirror.com

(Image: REUTERS)

(Image: REUTERS)

(Image: REUTERS)

Sucre state, which is the closest to the offshore epicente, said so far there were no reports of deaths or major damage due to the tremor.

Socialist Party governor Edwin Rojas told state television that the situation was calm in the eastern coastal state.

A magnitude 7.3 quake is considered major and is capable of causing widespread, heavy damage, but the quake was 76.5 miles (123.11 km) deep, which would have dampened the shaking.

"A 7.3 magnitude quake is going to cause some damage particularly as in this area structures are vulnerable. The Earth is able to absorb some of the energy, but a 7.3 quake produces a lot of energy", one expert said.

(Image: Getty Images) (Image: REUTERS) (Image: REUTERS)

"I feel like I'm about to faint. I'm shaking. It was long," telemarketing worker Sheny Fuentes, 22, speaking outside her work building in eastern Caracas. "I'm relieved that it doesn't seem like damage was that bad.

"We would have been even more affected (given Venezuela's economic crisis) - there are already people eating from the garbage and buildings aren't well made," she told Reuters.

Last week a powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake hit the Indonesian island of Lombok early on Sunday morning, two weeks after the disaster which killed at least 460 people and put the island on the verge of a humanitarian crisis.

(Image: REX/Shutterstock) (Image: AFP)

The US Geological Survey estimated the depth of that tremor to be 7.9 km (4.9 miles).

Later on Tuesday, a magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck just north of Ambrym Island in the Pacific Ocean archipelago of Vanuatu on Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The shallow quake's epicenter was located just a few miles off the northern tip of Ambrym, a sparsely populated island.

Venezuela has been struggling through a serious economic crisis in recent years, as the country struggles to feed itself as food prices skyrocketed following years of hyper-inflation.

In March, disturbing footage showing a malnourished man butchering a dog in the street was shared to highlight the dire economic state of the country.

Residents filmed the man - who was begging on the streets - chewing as he cuts up the canine.

In the appalling footage, which was uploaded to social media, the very thin man cuts chunks of meat off the dog, while sat surrounded by piles of rubbish.