On 9 September 2002, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck off the coast of Wewak, Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea.

Within this overall setting, the active tectonics of northern Papua New Guinea is dominate by the effects of continuing collision between the Huon–Finisterre island arc terrane with the edge of the Australian continental margin.

The orientation of these faults, parallel to the direction of thrusting, suggests that they accommodate distortion of the Huon–Finisterre block.

In East Sepik, a 5.01 m (16.4 ft) wave hit the area, destroying several homes.

[9] Ubidnim village suffered severe liquefaction when water and sand erupted from the ground as high as 5 meters.

Small uplifts of 30–40 cm was measured on several islands and the coast of Papua New Guinea.