New Zealand: Friday, one of the strongest earthquakes hit the South Pacific region. It was so strong that it triggered tsunami warnings across the ocean and forced thousands of people in New Zealand to leave coastal areas. Small tsunami waves were seen, but little damage was seen hours later.
The earthquake of magnitude 8.1 jolts the Kermadec Islands region about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from New Zealand’s two main islands.
It was the largest in a series of quakes over several hours and the strongest in modern history, including two prior tremors that recorded magnitude 7.4 and magnitude 7.3.
The tsunami warning raised traffic jams and some chaos in New Zealand as people scrambled to get to higher ground.
Small tsunami wave surges can be seen in the videos recorded by some residents, including at Tokomaru Bay near Gisborne. Later in the afternoon, The National Emergency Management Agency said that the danger had passed and people could return to their homes. But still, they need to avoid beaches or coastal areas.
Footage showed a wall of water rolling into the North Island coast at Tokomaru Bay after authorities issued a #tsunami warning on Friday morning #NewZealand #quake pic.twitter.com/7mD9QW4Fhw
— Hans Solo (@thandojo) March 5, 2021
After the massive quake, civil defense authorities in New Zealand announced the people in some coastal areas to immediately go to higher areas. They told a dangerous tsunami was possible, and waves could reach up to 3 meters.
#BREAKING: People evacuated to higher ground in American Samoa (Utulei) due to #Tsunami warning after massive earthquake around New Zealand. First wave expected at 10:19 AM.#NewZealand pic.twitter.com/CTQZ1c46rO
— Newsistaan (@newsistaan) March 4, 2021
People followed the advisory and return to their homes once the tsunami warning passes.
