Quake of 7.4 magnitude hits off El Salvador coast: USGS

(Reuters) - A major earthquake of 7.4 magnitude hit in the Pacific Ocean about 78 miles off the coast of El Salvador late Sunday night, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

No destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is expected, and there is no tsunami threat to Hawaii, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

The center said, however, that although it did not know if a tsunami had been generated, a warning was in effect for Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama and Mexico.

The earthquake struck 74 miles south of Usulutan, El Salvador, at a depth of 33 miles, the Geological Survey said.

There were no immediate reports of damage to coastal areas or to shipping.

(Reporting by Philip Barbara; Editing by Robert Birsel)