M6.8 earthquake - south of the Kermadec Islands

What happened

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck south of the Kermadec Islands on 17 Feb 1987, 06:16 UTC at a depth of 10 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was a shallow earthquake, which tends to be felt more strongly at the surface.