Posted on 11/13/2016 9:07:44 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Seismologist says tidal surge of up to one metre has been recorded in North Canterbury region of the New Zealand's South Island
* USGS says quake magnitude revised to 7.8
* Authorities issue tsunami alert, say waves could be 5 metres
* Thousands flee homes to seek higher ground
* Reports emerging of injuries, so far no reports of deaths
* In 2011, a 6.3 quake killed 185 people in Christchurch (Adds authorities warning first tsunami waves may not be biggest)
By Charlotte Greenfield
WELLINGTON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - A 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck central New Zealand just after midnight, the U.S. Geological Survey said, causing widespread damage and generating a tsunami.
Thousands of people along New Zealand's east coast fled their homes to head for higher ground as emergency services warned of destructive waves of up to five metres (yards) in some areas.
"The first waves have arrived but we know that it is too early to say what the impact has been," said Sarah Stuart-Black, national controller at the Ministry of Civil Defence. "Our concern is what is coming. Future waves are coming may be bigger than what has come before."
St. John Ambulance said it was sending helicopters carrying medical and rescue personnel to near the epicentre of the quake, 91 km (57 miles) north-northeast of Christchurch, where a 6.3 quake in 2011 killed 185 people, on New Zealand's South Island.
"We are starting to get reports of injuries from the earthquake area, including Culverden area and Kaikoura," Dion Rosario, St John Incident Controller, said in a statement. "However, at this stage we do not have specifics."
Police said they were investigating reports of a collapsed building in the coastal tourist town of Kaikoura.
The first tremor and a series of aftershocks were felt throughout most of New Zealand. There were no immediate reports of deaths.
"The whole house rolled like a serpent and some things smashed, the power went out," a woman, who gave her name as Elizabeth, told Radio New Zealand from her home in Takaka, near the top of the South Island.
In Wellington, there was gridlock on the roads to Mount Victoria, a hill with a lookout overlooking the low-lying coastal city.
"I'm just sort of parked by the side of the road and I think people are trying to go to sleep the same as I am," Wellington resident Howard Warner told Reuters after evacuating his seaside house.
Richard Maclean, a spokesman for the Wellington City Council, said there was structural damage to several buildings.
"We've got reports of broken water pipes and lots and lots of things off desks and shelves," he told Radio New Zealand.
Other residents reported glass had fallen from buildings into the streets and hotels and apartment buildings had been evacuated.
A spokeswoman for the city council of Christchurch, where tsunami sirens rent the air, said its "emergency operations centre" was active.
Several roads around the South Island were closed and damage to power and phone networks was reported.
Pictures shared on social media showed buckled roads, smashed glass and goods toppled from shelves in shops in Wellington and the upper South Island.
New Zealand's Geonet revised up its estimated magnitude of the quake to 7.5, from 6.6 earlier.
(Additional reporting by Colin Packham, Byron Kaye, Jane Wardell in Sydney; Writing by Lincoln Feast; Editing by Neil Fullick)
Magnitude : 5.7
Complicated to figure out whether before or after the NZ Quake, ....
We need GMT time stamps.
Prayers for New Zealand.
Perhaps due to the the gravitational forces in the earth caused by the influence of the super-moon.
They will probably be loaded up with some more supplies and I think that the residents may see a USAF aluminum overcast or two as well. That area around Christchurch has really been hammered recently by earthquakes with that 6+ in 2011. A 7+ does not leave much that has not been designed for it. Prayers for all there!
Thanks for da “PING!” Keep ‘em comin...
Ernest - that’s a shot from the 2011 Christchurch quake.
Just want to tell you that the USS Sampson is in New Zealand at present to help celebrate the NZ Navy’s 75th anniversary. Its the first US ship visit in over thirty years. There was a no nukes stand off between NZ and the US in the late 1980s and there’s been quiet, steady progress in breaking down the standoff in recent years. We knew a ship would visit because over two years ago a US C-17 landed at Ohakea air base to help celebrate the NZ Air Force’s 75th anniversary. It’s been protracted but the result is that the USS Samson is now headed to the South Island to assist in the Kaikoura evacuations - tourists and residents are completely cut off by major slips. Hillsides have fallen on rail lines and the main highway. It will all take billions of dollars and months to clear and rebuild.
So much thanks to the US for pitching in. We don’t forget stuff like this!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.