New Zealand's Earthquake Monitoring Service issues warning after 5.5 quake
New Zealand's Earthquake Monitoring Service has issued a warning after Alpine Fault was hit by a magnitude-5.5 earthquake early Sunday. The tremors were felt in the tourist areas of Queenstown and Wanaka, a statement by New Zealand Geonet says.
Commenting on the development, New Zealand Geonet said, "This fault system has the potential for larger events and we would like to make sure that you are prepared for a large earthquake at all times."
No damage has been reported so far.
According to the Straits Times, the Alpine Fault runs 600km along the entire spine of New Zealand's Southern Alps and has a record of rupturing every 300 years.
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Last year, scientists predicted that a large quake could hit New Zealand's South Island and reshape the entire region, cutting off more than 10,000 people.
Earlier in May this year, New Zealand's Kermadec Islands were jolted by an earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter Scale. The United Geological Survey had reported that the earthquake took place at 4:06 am (local time) or 4:06 pm (UTC time), hitting a depth of 73 km.
According to the southern region of Kermadec Islands is said to be the epicenter of the earthquake.
The Kermadec Islands is located between 800-1,000 km northeast of New Zealand's North Island region.
