UPDATES THROUGHOUT
By Recep Sakar
MELBOURNE, Australia (AA) – A tsunami has hit the northeast coast of New Zealand’s South Island after a powerful earthquake shook several cities across the country, including the capital Wellington and as far north as Auckland.
The Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management warned on its Twitter account that waves could continue for several hours, and said the warning would remain in place until it issued a cancelation notice.
The United States Geological Survey revised the magnitude of the temblor from 7.4 to 7.8, reporting that it struck around 93 kilometers (57.8 miles) northeast of Christchurch, the largest city in South Island, shortly after midnight Sunday.
It occurred at a shallow depth of 10 km, and was followed by a series of strong aftershocks.
Civil Defence advised residents of coastal South Island to move to higher ground and warned that a tsunami could also arrive in North Island.
The New Zealand Herald reported that sirens could be heard in Wellington, where some people ran onto the streets, while some houses in Cheviot were reportedly “badly affected” by the tremors.
Radio New Zealand cited police as saying that efforts are ongoing to verify reports of a building collapsing in the coastal town of Kaikoura, which was hit by a tsunami.
Gerry Brownlee, the minister of defense and minister for Canterbury earthquake recovery, told a press conference that while there were reports of casualties in the area, details were not available.
St John ambulance service also cited reports of injuries in Kaikoura and Culverden to the south.
Emergency lines were temporarily cut off after the quake, and local media reported that roads in several cities had suffered damaged.
New Zealand sits on the Ring of Fire, an area in the Pacific Ocean where a large number of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.
