Authorities are closely monitoring White Island after a new earthquake swarm began this morning.
A statement from New Zealand Crown Research Institute GNS Science says the earthquake swarm began around 4am this morning, with the three largest events being magnitude 4.2, 4.0, 3.7 that were felt in Whakatāne.
"The location of these earthquakes is the same as the May swarm, that we reported in previous Volcanic Alert Bulletins.
"Our analysis of this new swarm confirms its similarity to the May sequence, which was interpreted as fault movement.
"We are treating today’s swarm as a reactivation of the May swarm. Based on the May swarm we expect this morning’s activity to continue for a few days," the statement reads.
Despite the earthquakes, no new volcanic activity has been detected on White Island and the volcanic alert level remains at one.
The National Geohazards Monitoring Centre is keeping a close eye on the earthquakes and for any signs of volcanic unrest.
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