Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia; A 5.2 magnitude earthquake was registered in the Pacific Ocean near Russia's Kuril Islands, the regional branch of the Geophysical Survey of the Russian Academy of Sciences (GS RAS) told Sputnik on Saturday.

"The 5.2 magnitude earthquake was registered at 4:38 [17:38 on Friday, GMT] … at a depth of 41 kilometers [over 25 miles]," the head of the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk seismological station said.

The epicenter of the earthquake was located 170 kilometers east of the island of Simushir.

The expert added that residents of the Kuril Islands had not felt the tremor. No tsunami alert has been declared.

The Kuril Islands are located in a seismically active zone known as the Ring of Fire, which is regularly affected by powerful earthquakes. On November 5, 1952, the 9.0 magnitude earthquake triggered a huge tsunami that devastated the town of Severo-Kurilsk, leaving more than 2,300 people killed.

(Agencies)