Shallow M6.2 earthquake hits off the west coast of South Island, New Zealand
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.2 hit off the west coast of the South Island, New Zealand at 13:16 UTC on April 29, 2025. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). GeoNet is reporting it as an M5.9 earthquake at a depth of 12 km (7.5 miles).
Image credit: TW/SAM, Google
The epicenter was located 285 km (177 miles) SW of Bluff (population 1 938), and 301 km (187 miles) SW of Invercargill (population 57 000), Southland, New Zealand.
There is no tsunami threat from this earthquake.
The USGS issued a Green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage.
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are highly resistant to earthquake shaking, though some vulnerable structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are reinforced masonry and unreinforced brick with timber floor construction.
This is the second earthquake to hit this region in just over a month — after M6.7 at 01:43 UTC on March 25.
Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking
Regional seismicity
References:
1 M6.2 earthquake, New Zealand – USGS – April 29, 2025
2 M5.9 earthquake, New Zealand – GeoNet – April 29, 2025
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
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