Sunday 21 July 2013

Wellington earthquake


Big quake shakes central New Zealand
Central New Zealand has been hit by a severe magnitude 6.5 earthquake.



26 January, 2013

Geonet said it was centred in the Cook Strait, 20 kilometres east of Seddon at a depth of 17 kilometres. It struck at 5.09 pm

It is the latest in a sequence of major earthquakes that have been hitting Wellington and wider areas around central New Zealand since Thursday.

A spokesman from police said while there were lots of reports of broken windows and power lines down, there were no reports of deaths or major property damage. The Pacific Tsunami Center in Hawaii said the quake did not generate a tsunami.

A Wellington Airport spokeswoman said flights were diverted away from the capital between 6pm and 6.40pm because of fears the airport's navigational aid equipment had been knocked out.

Three flights were diverted to Palmerston North and another to Blenheim in the interim. A flight from Auckland to Wellington was cancelled and 10 more were delayed.

Planes were able to land in Wellington after 6.40pm by using alternative navigational equipment, the spokeswoman said. Airport staff would continue to examine its equipment throughout the night.

The runway was assessed between 5.30pm and 6pm and no damage was found.

A spokesman for the NZ Transport Agency said an initial damage report of state highways in the quake zone was done and no damage or blockages were found.

The agency would carry out more detailed inspections tomorrow, he said.

The Wellington suburb of Karori lost power when the big quake struck, it was restored about 5.45pm.

Residents who rushed to the supermarkets for batteries and candles - in particular - were met with doors barricaded by shopping trollies, and staff who said they were closed.

A worker at Karori Woolworths said it was too dangerous to send staff into the shop, as a great deal of produce had fallen.

She had already fallen over once, she said.

People queued outside the door offering to pay whatever they had to produce, as it was not possible to get change.

The owner of the budget store in Karori Mall was offering to give his candles away, as a community service. He led grateful customers through the store by torchlight.


15 shakes felt in lower North Island since 5pm - 6 strong, 2 severe


Wellington wharf crack pic.twitter.com/nv9qRIKxZg
View image on Twitter


A local deli after the 6.8 M quake in Wellington pic.twitter.com/chy93ioUJX
View image on Twitter


Palmerston North:

The quake was felt in Palmerston North this evening, although early reports indicated no damage in the region.

Aftershocks continued to rumble from the same area, and a 4.4 quake struck at 5.14pm, 15 kilometres north of Hunterville.

Palmerston North fire station had no reports of damage, and power was not lost to any part of Manawatu.

People took to social media to give their reactions to the quake.

Village Inn Kitchen tweeted, "Don't worry we are still pouring beer the the fridge is fine and I hope everyone is ok."

Rapper PNC, who was in town for a gig at Mr Cue last night, said he also felt it.


Marlborough:

The Seymour Square memorial clock in central Blenheim stopped at the time of the quake.

A Blenheim police spokesman said there had been reports of power outages throughout the Marlborough region including Blenheim, Seddon and "many outer suburbs".

He was unaware of any damage to buildings or infrastructure, except burst water pipes, and said no injuries had been reported to police.

"The phone has been ringing non-stop but it's mainly about power outages and landslips on State Highway 1," he said.

There was a slip on Highway 1 south of Seddon, which was believed to be as a result of the quake.

Officials were not sure of the exact location. But a team has been sent out.

It was not yet knwon whether the highway would be closed.


Mackenzie Presten, 10, with caregiver Anthony Mills, ducks for cover at the ASB sports centre in Kilbirnie during the earthquake. Photo: Craig Simcox/Fairfax NZ



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