Newzealand: New Zealand’s North Island on Friday and authorities said thousands of residents who had evacuated to higher ground could now return to their homes. Small tsunami waves triggered by a series of powerful earthquakes hit the east coast of New Zealand’s.

“All people who evacuated can now return,” said the agencies. An emergency alert was issued for all coastal areas around Auckland, a city of 1.7 million, where people were told to stay away from the water’s edge. There were no reports of damage or casualties from the quakes.

The third and strongest quake struck the Kermadec Islands, northeast of New Zealand’s North Island, on Friday morning, coming shortly after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake in the same region. Earlier, a large 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck about 900 km (540 miles) away on the east of the North Island.

Tsunami warnings were also put out for Pacific islands including New Caledonia and Vanuatu, while smaller tsunami waves may be recorded as far away as Antarctica and parts of South America, the U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.