Strong quake rattles Central NZ: 'Crack in my wall' - New Plymouth MP

BREAKING NEWS: A strong earthquake has struck Central New Zealand overnight.

The earthquake measuring 5.1 struck at around 12.04AM 35km North East of Seddon causing a lot of residents of Wellington and the upper South Island to be woken from there sleeps including New Plymouth MP Johnathan Young.

Mr Young of New Plymouth posted to social networking site Facebook just miniutes after the earthquake: "

5.1 quake in Wellington. In bed in my 14th floor apartment. One small crack in the wall. Gerry Brownlee was in a 6.9 in Japan yesterday. Still shaking a bit here."

A police spokesman in Wellington said his building "jumped up and down" with the force of the shake.

The Marlborough and Wellington regions have been shaking since a 6.5 magnitude jolt hit near Seddon in July.