Two moderate quakes shake Dominican Republic.

Santo Domingo- Two earthquakes were felt in the Dominican Republic in the last few hours, one with a magnitude 5.0 and the other 3.0, according to the US Geodetic Survey.

The epicenter of the 5.0 tremor -which the State Univerity UASD Seismology Institute rated at 4.8, was located in the Mona Passage and south of Saona Island, around 47 kilometers from La Romana, but felt in the entire eastern region, while the milder quake was felt in the Northwest province of Valverde.

DETAILS FROM THE US GEODETIC SURVEY:

Magnitude 5.0

Date-Time Thursday, January 19, 2012 at 06:28:20 UTC

Thursday, January 19, 2012 at 02:28:20 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location 18.052°N, 68.762°W

Depth 82.6 km (51.3 miles)

Region DOMINICAN REPUBLIC REGION

Distances 47 km (30 miles) SSE (152°) from La Romana, La Romana, Dominican Republic

63 km (39 miles) S (185°) from Higüey, La Altagracia, Dominican Republic

74 km (46 miles) SE (128°) from San Pedro de Macorís, San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic

135 km (84 miles) ESE (111°) from SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic.