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New Zealand · Waikato

M3.4 Earthquake near Waikato District, Waikato (New Zealand)

UTC time: 2026-10-03 23:02:01 UTC Local time: —

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About this earthquake

A magnitude M3.4 earthquake was recorded near Waikato District, Waikato (New Zealand) on October 3, 2026 at 23:02 UTC. At around 281 km, the focal depth places this among intermediate-depth events. Shaking of this size is frequently noticed but usually harmless.

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

Details

ID
350f28fd7fa3ed684ad331f2092849aa05fec845
Magnitude
M3.4
Depth
281.1 km
UTC time
2026-10-03 23:02:01 UTC
Local time
—
Country
New Zealand
State
Waikato
City
Waikato District
County
Waikato District
Source
emsc
Coordinates
-37.95590, 174.96420
Temperature
12.4°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 281.1 km (Intermediate) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 281.1 km
Intermediate
281.1 km
281.1 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

  • Auckland Volcanic Field
    Distance: 119 km ·Volcanic field ·Elevation: 260 m ·Last eruption: 1446 ·New Zealand
  • Taupo
    Distance: 122 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 760 m ·Last eruption: 260 ·New Zealand
  • Tuhua/Mayor Island
    Distance: 136 km ·Shield ·Elevation: 355 m ·Last eruption: -5055 ·New Zealand
  • Okataina
    Distance: 137 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: 1'111 m ·Last eruption: 1981 ·New Zealand
  • Tongariro
    Distance: 146 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 1'978 m ·Last eruption: 2012 ·New Zealand
  • Ruapehu
    Distance: 156 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'797 m ·Last eruption: 2007 ·New Zealand

Radius · 50 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Hamilton International AirportNew Zealand · HLZ · NZHN
    33.7 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

Waikato

Context for this earthquake

04 Oct 2025 – 04 Oct 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 65 Catalogue entries

Of 64 other entries for this area and period, 12 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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