New Zealand earthquakes trigger tsunami warning

Three earthquakes hit New Zealand on Friday (4), triggered tsunami alerts and prompted authorities to ask residents of the country’s northeast coast to leave their homes.

No damage has been recorded to date.

The first 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the north of the country, was felt by more than 60,000 people and triggered the first tsunami warning – which was later suppressed.

Next are others, 7.4 and 8.0 – the latest was recorded at 8:28 a.m. local time (4:28 p.m. in Brasilia), 1,033 km off the coast, according to the US Geological Survey.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has reported that waves are likely in New Zealand, Tonga, American Samoa and Fiji.

“Coastline residents should immediately leave for the nearest elevated area, outside of all evacuation areas and inland. DON’T STAY AT HOME,” the New Zealand agency asked. emergency management on Twitter.

“I hope everyone is doing well, especially on the East Coast, which felt the full force of the earthquake,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern wrote on Instagram.

The earthquakes have left Chile in a “state of precaution”. According to Onemi (National Emergency Office of the Ministry of Interior and Public Security), this means that there is the possibility of a “small tsunami”, which could hit the coast of the country this morning.

The department responsible for the Peruvian Navy issued a tsunami warning after one of the earthquakes in New Zealand.

New Zealanders are used to earthquakes due to the country’s geographic position, located in the region known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, marked by intense seismic and volcanic activity.

According to GeoNet, New Zealand has around 20,000 earthquakes per year, although not all of them are perceived by the population.

In 2011, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake killed 185 people in the city of Christchurch. In 2016, there were two billion deaths and casualties after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the city of Kaikoura.

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