Massive 7.4 earthquake rattles New Zealand

Agencies

Christchurch, 04 September 2010: A strong earthquake of 7.4 magnitude hit New Zealand, 4 miles southeast of Christchurch, the biggest city on the nation’s South Island, in the middle of the night local time, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said on Friday.

 

There are no reports of casualties so far.

 

Some residents posted Twitter alerts about power outages, damage and huge aftershocks. The USGS earlier said the quake measured 7.3 magnitude.

 

There were, however, no immediate tsunami warnings, but the earthquake caused widespread damage and cut power.

 

 

The centre of the quake was 66 kilometres deep and it struck at 1635 GMT (12:35 p.m. ET). There have also been reports of the quake being felt as far as Wellington and several aftershocks have been felt.

 

Christchurch, on the east coast of the South Island, is New Zealand’s second largest city with a population of about 342,000 people.

 

"No destructive widespread tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data," the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.