Bureau of Meteorology issues warning over an 8.2 magnitude earthquake off New Zealand before cancelling it moments later

A brief panic gripped parts of eastern Australia on Wednesday after the national weather bureau sent a tsunami warning to thousands of residents.

Residents along the New South Wales and Queensland coast received the Bureau of Meteorology warning, sent shortly after 11.30am, reading: “tsunami warning” and giving the location of the user. App users were informed that a tsunami was approaching, caused by an 8.2 magnitude earthquake off the west coast of New Zealand.