
Lord Howe Island, NZ, on tsunami alert over 7.6 Pacific quake.
A tsunami warning has been issued for Lord Howe Island, off the NSW coast, after an earthquake near the Loyalty Islands within New Caledonia.
New Zealand authorities are also on alert, urging residents along its northern coast to avoid beaches and shore areas.
The New Zealand National Emergency Management Agency said people should get out of the water, off beaches and away from harbours, rivers and estuaries in areas from Ahipara to Bay of Islands, Great Barrier Island and from Matata to Tolaga Bay.
"We expect New Zealand coastal areas to experience strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges at the shore," the agency said in a statement.
TSUNAMI CONFIRMED. Observation - Norfolk Is at 2:15am AEDT. MARINE THREAT warning for LORD HOWE ISLAND. Issued by JATWC 2:02 AM AEDT Thu 11 Feb 2021. Tsunami affecting marine area commencing after 2:45 am AEDT Thu, persisting for several hours Warnings at: https://t.co/0U1oGjJrAx pic.twitter.com/pZNlowBWdC
— Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@BOM_au) February 10, 2021
Geoscience Australia said the 7.6 magnitude quake's epicentre was about 400km east of Tadine, New Caledonia, and was at a depth of 54km.
The quake, at 12.20am AEDT on Thursday, followed at least three other tremors in the region with magnitudes ranging from 6.0 to 6.2 in a span of just over an hour.
"Sea level observations have confirmed a tsunami has been generated," the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre said in a bulletin, adding that a marine warning was current for Lord Howe Island from 2.45 am AEDT.
"People in areas with threat of land inundation and flooding are strongly advised by emergency authorities to go to higher ground or at least 1 kilometre inland," the JATWC bulletin advised.
Democrats outline case at Trump trial.
Democrats are formally making their case that Donald Trump should be convicted for inciting the US Capitol siege, a day after a divided Senate concluded his impeachment trial could proceed though he's left office.