NZ: Quake strikes during royal couple Prince Harry & Meghan Markle visit

Wellington, Oct 30: New Zealand on Tuesday, October 30, experienced a powerful earthquake of 6.7 magnitude in its North Island and it happened when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are visiting the country.

The earthquake hit near Taumarunui, located 280 kilometres south of Auckland where the royal couple was on a visit. The country's parliament was suspended after the quake which was one of the strongest felt in the island-nation since the 7.8-magnitude quake that struck the South Island two years ago.

Harry and Markle visited New Zealand on the occasion of the completion of 125 years of women's suffrage in the country. New Zealand was the first country on earth to allow women in vote way back in 1893 and Markle, a self-professed feminist, congratulated it saying it set up an example for others to follow around the globe.

At a reception hosted by the country's Governor General Dame Patsy Reddy, Markle said suffrage is not just about the right to vote but also what the idea represents: the basic and fundamental human right of being able to participate in the choices for one's future and for one's community.

The audience she addressed mainly had women guests, including Jacinda Ardern, the country's third woman prime minister, and Patsy Reddy, the third woman governor-general.