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New Zealand · Bay of Plenty

M4.0 Earthquake near Rotorua Lakes District, Bay of Plenty (New Zealand)

UTC time: 2026-09-24 04:41:48 UTC Local time: —
Earthquake newsQuakeMap24
Archive record · original publication time was not recorded

Automatically generated from measurement data by QuakeMap24. Values may change after further analysis.

Magnitude
M4.0
Depth
170.1 km
Source
EMSC

Bay of Plenty · Rotorua Lakes District

Country overview

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About this earthquake

On September 24, 2026 at 04:41 UTC, a magnitude M4.0 earthquake occurred near Rotorua Lakes District, Bay of Plenty (New Zealand). At around 170 km, the focal depth places this among intermediate-depth events. Earthquakes of this magnitude are clearly felt; minor damage to vulnerable buildings is possible.

The event was recorded by EMSC. New Zealand: over the past 24 hours, QuakeMap24 logged 3 earthquakes, the strongest at M4.0.

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 170.1 km (Intermediate) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 170.1 km
Intermediate
170.1 km
170.1 km — deeper than the regional average (70.1 km)
Regional average: 70.1 km
Why depth matters

Intermediate-depth quakes are felt across a wider area but usually cause less surface damage.

Depth classes per USGS

Volcanoes nearby

  • Okataina
    Distance: 31 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: 1'111 m ·Last eruption: 1981 ·New Zealand
  • Tuhua/Mayor Island
    Distance: 83 km ·Shield ·Elevation: 355 m ·Last eruption: -5055 ·New Zealand
  • Taupo
    Distance: 88 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 760 m ·Last eruption: 260 ·New Zealand
  • Whakaari/White Island
    Distance: 103 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 294 m ·Last eruption: 2026 ·New Zealand
  • Tongariro
    Distance: 135 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 1'978 m ·Last eruption: 2012 ·New Zealand
  • Ruapehu
    Distance: 150 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'797 m ·Last eruption: 2007 ·New Zealand

Radius · 50 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Rotorua Regional AirportNew Zealand · ROT · NZRO
    14.5 kmStraight-line distance
  • Tauranga AirportNew Zealand · TRG · NZTG
    39.0 kmStraight-line distance

Source: OurAirports · Dataset date: 2026-10-04

This selection shows geographic proximity, not a hazard zone or confirmed impacts. Distances use recorded site coordinates. Sources & data dates

Bay of Plenty

Context for this earthquake

04 Oct 2025 – 04 Oct 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 115 Catalogue entries

Of 114 other entries for this area and period, 10 have a higher stored magnitude. Different magnitude types and reports not yet merged limit the comparison.

Open seismic profile

Historic earthquake map · New Zealand

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Explore recent and long-term earthquake activity in this country. Use filters to narrow down by magnitude, depth, and date range.

Country statistics · New Zealand

Country overview
View earthquake KPIs, strongest and latest events, and averages for this country.

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