World Map › Oceania › New Zealand
Country
Map of New Zealand
Oceania · Wellington
New Zealand spans the Australian, Pacific and Kermadec plates. It has 23 volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years, 8 of which have erupted since 1900. Since 1900, 57 major earthquakes have been recorded, causing at least 474 deaths. Its exposure to natural hazards is 4.1 out of 10 (INFORM index), a medium level. Its overall risk index, which accounts for its ability to cope, is 1.6 out of 10.
- Capital
- Wellington
- Population
- 5,307,800
- Area
- 268,021 km²
- Continent
- Oceania
Tectonic Plates
Natural Hazards
Exposure to natural hazards according to the European Commission's INFORM index, from 0 (very low) to 10 (very high), overall and for each type of hazard.
Overall Risk Index
This overall score combines hazard exposure with the vulnerability of the population (1.1 out of 10) and the lack of coping capacity (1.6 out of 10). A highly exposed but well-prepared country therefore gets a low overall score.
People Exposed Each Year
- 8,450to strong shaking (intensity VI and above)
- 2,214to destructive shaking (intensity VIII and above)
- 16to tsunamis
- 12,044to hurricane-force winds (category 1 and above)
- 5,438to river floods
- 2,119to coastal floods
Overall Risk Index Over Time
Hazard Levels
Hazard level assessed by ThinkHazard! (World Bank, GFDRR), meaning the likelihood of a damaging event, from very low to high.
- River FloodHigh
- Urban FloodHigh
- Coastal FloodHigh
- EarthquakeHigh
- LandslideHigh
- TsunamiHigh
- VolcanoHigh
- CycloneHigh
- WildfireHigh
- Extreme HeatLow
- Water ScarcityVery Low
Volcanoes (23)
Volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years; year of the last known eruption.
- Whakaari / White Island 2026
- Monowai 2014
- Mount Tongariro 2012
- Havre Seamount 2012
- Rumble III 2008
- Mount Ruapehu 2007
- Raoul Island 2006
- Okataina 1981
- Taranaki 1800
- Auckland volcanic field 1446
- Healy 1360
- Taupō Volcano 260
- Macauley 4,360 BCE
- Tuhua/Mayor Island 5,055 BCE
- Clark ?
- Tangaroa ?
- Rumble V ?
- Rumble IV ?
- Rumble II West ?
- Brothers ?
- Wright ?
- Curtis Island ?
- Giggenbach ?
Major Earthquakes Since 1900
Earthquakes that caused deaths or significant damage, or of magnitude 7.5 and above (NOAA).
Deadliest
- 1931Hawke Bay · M 7.7261 deaths
- 2011Christchurch, Lyttelton · M 6.1185 deaths
- 1929South Island · M 7.517 deaths
- 1968South Island: Nw Coast · M 7.13 deaths
- 2016Amberley · M 7.82 deaths
- 1987North Island, Whakatani, Edgecumbe · M 6.61 deaths
Regions
Regions with volcanoes, major earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones or famous faults.
Tsunamis
32 major tsunamis have reached New Zealand since 1900. The deadliest and highest are listed below.
- 1931Tsunami (New Zealand) · 15.0 m
- 1947Tsunami (New Zealand) · 10.0 m
- 2016Tsunami (New Zealand) · 6.5 m
- 1947Tsunami (New Zealand) · 6.0 m
- 1960Tsunami (Chile) · 5.5 m
- 2003Tsunami (New Zealand) · 4.0 m
- 1946Tsunami (United States of America) · 2.4 m
- 1964Tsunami (United States of America) · 1.3 m
Tropical Cyclones
8 major tropical cyclones have made landfall in New Zealand since 1950. The deadliest and most powerful are listed below.
- 1996Cyclone Fergus · 102 km/h
- 2014Cyclone Lusi · 83 km/h
- 1980Cyclone Simon · 80 km/h
- 1992Cyclone Esau · 56 km/h
- 2012Cyclone Evan · 28 km/h
- 1989Cyclone Harry · 0 km/h
- 2018Cyclone Gita · 0 km/h
- 1998Cyclone Yali · 0 km/h
Sources : Natural Earth · Wikidata · INFORM Risk Index (1 September 2026 v 0.7.3), Commission européenne, CC BY 4.0 · NOAA NCEI · ThinkHazard!, GFDRR, CC BY · Bird (2003), PB2002 · Global Volcanism Program, Smithsonian Institution