Powerful 8.1 quake hits off New Zealand, prompting evacuations
A magnitude 8.1 earthquake; the third major one of the day; was detected near the Kermadec Islands near New Zealand on Thursday; according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
subsequently, Residents in some areas received emergency alerts on their phones urging them to “EVACUATE NOW,” as tsunami sirens rang out.
The emergency agency issued a temporary evacuation order for people near the coast, warning them, “Do not stay at home” as a “damaging tsunami is possible.”
The Kermadec Islands are 500 to 620 miles northeast of New Zealand’s North Island.
The East Coast of the North Island from the Bay of Islands to Whangarei, from Matata to Tolaga Bay including Whakatane and Opotiki, and Great Barrier Island are all included in the Pacific nation’s tsunami warning.
On Friday afternoon; the agency downgraded its warning from a “land and marine threat” to “beach and marine threat,” meaning all residents who evacuated can now return to their homes.
It added, however, that strong currents and unpredictable surges may continue for several hours and that people should stay away from beaches, shores, and rivers.
The earthquake came “without any significant warning,” seismologist Bill Fry said; in a press conference Friday.
He also added; in his 13 years of responding to earthquakes and tsunamis in New Zealand, “this is the first time we’ve had this particular sequence.”
Furthermore, The quake was reported to be felt in cities including Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton, Whanganui, and Tauranga. Auckland residents reported feeling 20 seconds of the quake.
After the largest quake; civil defense authorities in New Zealand told people in certain areas on the east coast of the North Island; that they should move immediately to higher ground and not stay in their homes.
The agency said in a report that the largest quake occurred at the intersection of the Pacific and Australia tectonic plates and eclipsed the biggest quake previously recorded in the region; a magnitude 8.0 in 1976.
It said the interaction between the plates creates one of the most seismically active regions in the world, and it has recorded 215 quakes there above magnitude 6.0 during the past century.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the magnitude 7.4 quake was likely a “foreshock”; that contributed to the larger quake; but that the first quake that hit closer to New Zealand was too far away in time and distance to have directly contributed.
