A magnitude 5.3 earthquake hit the west side of the Big Island of Hawaii on Saturday, the US Geological Survey said.

The quake hit about 5 pm and had an epicentre about 15 miles (24 kilometres) southwest of Kailua-Kona, a city of nearly 12,000 people on the island's west coast, the agency said.  The earthquake had a depth of about 10 miles (16 kilometres).