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Powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake hits New Zealand; no tsunami threat

WION Web Team
Wellington, New Zealand (Aotearoa)Updated: Jun 16, 2019, 06:52 AM IST
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Representative image. Photograph:(Reuters)

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The Kermadec Islands, a volcanic archipelago, are prone to earthquakes. The islands are a dependency of New Zealand and lie at the western edge of the Kermadec Trench.

There is no tsunami threat to New Zealand after a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck near the uninhabited Kermadec islands northeast of New Zealand Sunday, Civil Defence authorities of the country says.

New Zealand’s Ministry of Civil Defense and Emergency Management cleared New Zealand of a tsunami threat moments after issuing a beach warning. 

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The US Geological Survey said the earthquake hit a spot about 873 kilometres (541 miles) northeast of Ngunguru, New Zealand, a town of about 1,400 people. It occurred at a depth of 10 kilometres (6 miles).

The area the quake struck is called the Kermadec Islands, about 800 kilometers (497 miles) northeast of New Zealand’s North Island.

The Kermadec Islands, a volcanic archipelago, are prone to earthquakes. The islands are a dependency of New Zealand and lie at the western edge of the Kermadec Trench.

Earthquakes have frequently struck the Kermadecs, including a 7.4 magnitude quake in 2006 and a 7.6 in 2007. 

In 2011, two quakes, measuring 7.6 and 7.4, struck three months apart.

(With inputs from agencies)