A deserted beach at the edge on an old Mauna Loa lava flow is viewed on December 16, 2016, in this aerial photo taken along the Kona Kohala Coast, Hawaii. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images) A magnitude 5.0 earthquake was the strongest of a series of temblors that struck Friday on Hawaii's Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano on the planet that scientists say is in a "state of heightened unrest."Smaller aftershocks followed, according to the U.S.
Geological Survey.The series started with a 4.6 magnitude quake seconds before the larger one, which the USGS previously reported as having magnitude of 5.1.The first one was slightly offshore and south of the town of Pahala, followed by the larger quake just south of Pahala beneath a highway, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said in a statement.Hawaii County Mayor Mitch Roth said there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.
He said later there was some minor damage in Pahala, including tiles that fell in a county building.READ MORE: Tonga volcano spews enough water into stratosphere to fill 58,000 Olympic-size swimming pools"Shaking from the larger earthquakes may have been strong enough to do minor local damage, especially to older buildings," the observatory's statement said.