This Article is From Jul 07, 2011

Powerful quake off New Zealand triggers tsunami

New York: A powerful magnitude-7.8 earthquake rattled New Zealand's remote Kermadec Islands in the Pacific Ocean, the US Geological Survey reported. A local tsunami warning was issued.

The volcanic Kermadec Island peaks are a remote outpost that are generally uninhabited aside from a weather station and a hostel for visiting New Zealand scientists.

The 7:03 am Thursday (1903 GMT Wednesday) quake was 29.8 miles (48 kilometres) deep, the USGS said.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre, a US agency, issued a warning for possible tsunami damage in the Keramecs, Tonga and New Zealand. It said a tsunami measured at 2.2 feet (0.68 metres) was measured at Raoul Island in the Kermadecs.

The Kermadecs are about 570 miles (920 kilometres) south of Tonga, the nearest major island, and are 736 miles (1185 kilometres) northeast of Auckland, New Zealand.

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