A magnitude 6.2 earthquake has struck off the west coast of New Zealand. No tsunami warning has been issued and there are no reports of damage.
The US Geological Survey said the quake struck at around 1am local time. The epicentre was 300km southwest of the city of Invercargill, with a shallow depth of 10km below the seabed.
New Zealand has a population of around five million and is located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” – a seismically active belt of volcanoes that surrounds the Pacific Ocean. This is where most of the world’s earthquakes occur.
An earthquake of magnitude 6.0-6.9 is considered strong. It can cause damage to well-built structures. There are 100 to 150 earthquakes of this magnitude worldwide each year.
