New Zealand: Strong earthquake of magnitude 6.1 hits north west of Wellington

A massive earthquake of magnitude 6.1 hit the north west of Wellington, New Zealand on Wednesday.

According to preliminary data, the quake was located at a moderately shallow depth of 57.4 km. The earthquake struck at 7.38pm at a depth of 76km. It was centred 50km north-west of Paraparaumu.

Within 15 minutes, over 31000 people reported on GeoNet that they had felt the earthquake.

“A big shake there! A magnitude 6.0, 57 km deep, 50 km north-west of Paraparaumu was widely felt in the North Island,” said New Zealand’s Civil Defence agency.

There were no immediate reports of damage, and no tsunami warning has been issued.

But residents reported feeling the ground shaking for 10-20 seconds, likening it to a convoy of giant trucks rolling by.

The quake came as the cleanup gets underway from a devastating cyclone, which killed four people and caused widespread damage across the North Island.

“It is already a really stressful time for people — look after yourself and the people around you,” said the civil defence agency.