A major earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale has hit a Pacific Ocean area located some 684 kilometres north-east of Opotiki, New Zealand. The tremor struck at a depth of 10 kilometres at 12:49:53 UTC.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre warned of waves in Fiji, the Kermadec Islands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Tonga, and Vanuatu. However, no tsunami alert was issued in relation to the quake.
Last month, a strong 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck New Zealand's Levin region, causing buildings to shake in the capital Wellington.
The country is situated in a collision zone between the Indo-Australian and Pacific tectonic plates, and earthquakes occur frequently. The region is part of the Pacific Ocean basin's "Ring of Fire", famous for earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand saw a series of strong earthquakes in spring 2019, some with a magnitude of 7.0.
