The north and south islands of New Zealand were shaken by a’massive’ 6.3 magnitude earthquake that was felt by more than 70,000 people.
The ‘terrifying’ tremor was centered around the nation’s capital Wellington on the north island around 7:38pm NZDT on Wednesday, approximately 50 kilometers northwest of Paraparaumu at a depth of 48 kilometers.
The earthquake was classified as powerful by GeoNet after it struck with a jolt and was followed by 30 seconds of moderate shaking.
According to a resident of Christchurch, the earthquake had a rolling sensation.
Aaron Dahmen, chief political correspondent for Newstalk ZB, was caught up in the chaos and reported that his entire Wellington home violently shook when he felt a ‘huge bump’.
He stated that a persistent rumble ensued for some minutes.
David Haxton of Raumati Beach, north of Wellington, remarked, “It was like a freight train hurtling past our house,” while other New Zealanders described it as “huge” and “terrifying.”
The National Emergency Management Agency stated that a tsunami threat does not exist.
Metlink trains in Wellington have warned travellers to expect significant delays after being compelled to operate at 25km/h until further notice.
20 minutes after the magnitude 6.3 earthquake, a magnitude 4.0 earthquake also struck the nation.
It impacted 45 kilometers southwest of Taumarunui in the center of the North Island at a depth of 78 kilometers.
It comes one day after the government declared a national emergency owing to significant floods and destruction caused by Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle.
Tuesday morning, tens of thousands of New Zealanders on the North Island awoke to no power, flooded homes, road closures, and phone outages, as a result of the monster storm’s widespread destruction and isolation of towns.
The storm’s catastrophic winds left tens of thousands, probably hundreds of thousands, without electricity, including the whole city of Napier.
MORE TO COME.
»Earthquake measuring 6.3 in New Zealand occurs northwest of Paraparaumu, close to Wellington«