Massive magnitude 6.9 earthquake rocks Kermadec Islands, in New Zealand

A huge 6.8 magnitude earthquake has rocked New Zealand’s Kermadec Islands today. Thousands of people felt the massive quake 785km north-east of the mainland, reports RadioNZ. After the Ministry of Civil Defence initially warned the Kermadec tremor could trigger a tsunami, officials quickly quashed that possibility.

In a tweet, the Ministry said: “There is no tsunami threat to New Zealand following the 6.8M earthquake SOUTH OF THE KERMADEC ISLANDS at 4.19pm. “ Seismologist John Ristau said: “People aren’t imagining that they felt anything, they did feel it. “They’re just feeling this large earthquake that’s a few hundred kilometers away, north of the North Island.” READ MORE