Severe quakes strike central NZ
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck central New Zealand this evening.
The quake, which was centred 30km east of Seddon, the site of all the seismic activity in the last couple of days, was 11km deep.
infonews.co.nz DRIBBLE NZ Reporters were kept busy with over 150 calls reporting "felt it" submissions.
TV3 and ONE News was fast to report the quake interupting normal programming.
There has been confirmed reports of cracks all threw out Wellington but sadly, hundreds of thousands of people all over the nation are frightened.
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POWER BACK FOR 5000 CUSTOMERS, 500 STILL OUT
Power is now back for the 5000 customers in the Wellington suburb of Karori who lost power after the magnitude 6.5 earthquake.
The quake that rumbled for more than a minute struck at 5.09pm east of Seddon.
Wellington Electricity told ONE News 400 in Wainui are still without power as lines are down but it's expected to be back on in the next 2-3 hours.
BREAKING NEWS FROM TARANAKI CIVIL DEFENCE
BREAKING @ 7PM: The Taranaki Civil Defence has just said a major earthquake is bound to hit tonight or over the next three days. "Be prepared for more quakes tonight, and over the next few days. It is probable that these may be >5.5 It is also possible a larger earthquake could occur."
They have said to remember to Drop, Cover, Hold in an earthquake, you never know if it is going to be a big quake or not.
FELT ALL OVER NATION
A quake feeler in New Plymouth who was in Christchurch when all the quakes occured told us that his family ran for the hallway as computers and tvs feel behind them.
"It was chaos all round. Computer fell on ground, tv toppeled over aswell. We were all holding on for life. It was the most terrifying earthquake I have ever been threw"
Meanwhile a Wellington resident said "There was about sixty seconds of shaking, everything in the room was moving,'' he said. "I went outside and still all the power lines were shaking and it was just chaos, it was quite scary. It was the biggest earthquake I have ever felt.''
"That's the worst quake I've ever felt,'' said Wellington resident Sarah Bennett.
Ms Bennett and her husband Lee Slater, whose Highbury house is built on the side of a hill, said it was swaying on its piles.
"You usually only get a bit of a jiggle but this was a hula dance,'' Ms Bennett said.
A Fire Service spokeswoman said nearly 50 calls were received to the central communications centre in the half hour after the earthquake.
All 12 Wellington appliances were sent out on jobs, with a backlog starting to pile up by 5.45pm.
She said there were multiple alarm activations in central Wellington with widespread reports of structural damage.
A roof collapsed at the Harvey Norman building in Semple St, Porirua and a wall collapsed in Wainuiomata causing a gas leak in Bull Ave.
The shake was immediately followed by smaller quakes in around the Wellington/Cook Strait area.
This afternoon's large shake, which struck just after 5pm, followed dozens of aftershocks after this morning's magnitude 5.8 in Cook Strait between Wellington and Seddon at 7.17am.
Most of the tremors have been centred in the strait but there have been quakes further south off Kaikoura and as far north as Wanganui.
A magnitude 5.7 quake shook the region on Friday.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) said Civil Defence had made an initial assessment that the earthquake was unlikely to have caused a tsunami that would pose a threat to New Zealand.
Wellington Airport has reopened after a 20-minute runway check, a spokeswoman said. Some domestic and international flights were affected but the number was not yet known.
NZHERALD: Severe quake rocks North Island
TRANSPORT
Wellington airport spokesperson Briarley Kirk said navigational equipment appeared to be affected by the earthquake.
Domestic and international flights have been affected but the number is not yet known.
Some flights have resumed at Wellington Airport, Ms Kirk said.
"While we still are investigating our navigational equipment, aircrafts can use other forms of navigational equipment so they are still departing and arriving in."
All suburban trains on Wellington's rail network have been cancelled until further notice.
In a statement on Tranz Metro's website, the company said bus services were being arranged, but would be limited.
"Customers are advised to make alternative travel arrangements and only travel if necessary.
"Tranz Metro apologises for the inconvenience and we thank you for your patience."
An earlier quake had forced the temporary closure of the network this morning with some services resuming.
POWER
Wellington City Council spokesman Richard MacLean said he had received reports of power going off for a time in the suburb of Karori.
"No one's heard of any injuries as of yet. But there's is quite a lot of evacuations going on in various buildings around town . Some buildings, we are aware that there is significant damage to them. But at the moment, the city is pretty much still running.
"Electricity's on, people are still in restaurants and bars... it is not a chaotic situation by any means."
Emergency services were gathering at the regional emergency management office in Thorndon.
"We're getting reports of damage coming in," Mr MacLean said.
"We're obviously working with the fire service and the police. They're the ones who are going to be giving us a lot of the information.
"We're getting lots of reports of stuff coming off shelves, structural damage of buildings."
FIRE SERVICE
A Fire Service spokeswoman said nearly 50 calls were received to the central communications centre in the half hour after the earthquake.
All 12 Wellington appliances were sent out on jobs, with a backlog starting to pile up by 5.45pm.
She said there were multiple alarm activations in central Wellington with widespread reports of structural damage.
St John Ambulance did not attend any jobs related to the earthquake, a spokesman said.
There had been no admissions to Wellington Hospital as a result, a Capital and Coast District Health Board spokeswoman said.
WELLINGTON'S CENTRAL LIBRARY
There were cordons around Wellington's central library after a water leak.
Wellington city council director of property and housing Greg Orchard said connection between the library and Wellington City Council building had been cordoned off for safety reasons.
Mr Orchard said cracks have appeared either side of the two-level connecting structure. The structure is unsupported from below, sitting in between buildings.
Water is leaking from the structure but the source of the leak had yet to be determined.
An engineer had been called in but he would inevitably be very busy, Mr Orchard said.
More to come.