Earthquake hits New Zealand

Wellington: An earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale jolted New Zealand's North Island region Monday, media reported.

Authorities ordered people in Te Araroa town to move away from low-lying areas because of a tsunami risk after the quake struck in the morning, Xinhua reported citing data released by the government's GeoNet monitoring service.

The quake struck offshore with the epicentre about 170 km from Te Araroa and about 31 km deep, and was felt widely throughout New Zealand, GeoNet seismologist Bill Fry said.