The Civil Defence this afternoon tweeted and sent automatic alerts - including phone calls - saying it was assessing whether a 6.6 magnitude earthquake could set off a tsunami in New Zealand.
However those alerts were based on old information.
Civil Defence reported the incident on Twitter, quickly deleting the first tweet and replacing it with another apologising for the mistake.
Breathe a sigh of relief New Zealand, there is no current earthquake event in the Kermadec Islands.
The Civil Defence this afternoon tweeted and sent automatic alerts - including phone calls - saying it was assessing whether a 6.6 magnitude earthquake could set off a tsunami in New Zealand.
However those alerts were based on old information.
Civil Defence reported the incident on Twitter, quickly deleting the first tweet and replacing it with another apologising for the mistake.'
Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management (MCDEM) communications manager Anthony Frith said they were looking into what caused the false alarm.
"A notification of an old earthquake was issued - that is, the system duplicated and issued an old message. We are looking into what caused this."
Located northeast of the North Island, the Kermadec Islands are around 800 to 1000km away.
The islands are of volcanic origin and are uninhabited, except for Raoul Island where a team of Department of Conservation staff carry out weed control work.
To reiterate, there is no tsunami threat for New Zealand.
