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Magnitude 8.1

Friday March 5, 2021 - 8:28 AM, 1025 km north-east of Whangarei
Shaking The estimated intensity of ground shaking near the earthquake's epicentre.
Unnoticeable
Depth The distance below the Earth's surface where the earthquake originated.
26 km
Quality An indication of how reliable the earthquake's location and details are, based on the amount and quality of data available.
Best

At 8:28 a.m., on Friday 5 March 2021 NZDT, a magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck the Kermadec Islands, 1025 km north-east of Whangarei.

This event was preceded by the M7.2 East Cape earthquake at 2:27 a.m. and then a M7.3 event at 6:41 a.m. also in the Kermadecs.

Tsunami

Our instruments recorded the tsunami from the earlier M7.2 East Cape earthquake. This was closely followed by tsunamis generated by the M7.3 and M8.1 Kermadec earthquakes.

These waves overlapped to produce a tsunami between 35 and 40 cm in amplitude at the Great Barrier Island tsunami gauge and recorded at many other gauges around New Zealand.

Surges arriving in Tokomaru Bay on the East Cape
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Surges arriving in Tokomaru Bay on the East Cape

Tsunami signal from gauges across New Zealand
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Tsunami signal from gauges across New Zealand

A selection of tsunami gauges across New Zealand
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A selection of tsunami gauges across New Zealand