Tsunami warning follows powerful 7.8 magnitude quake in New Zealand- Evacuation

A powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked New Zealand early Monday, the US Geological Survey said, prompting a tsunami warning and knocking out power and phone services in many parts of the country.

The shallow tremor hit some 90 kilometres (57 miles) north of the South Island city of Christchurch which was devastated five years ago by a 6.3 tremor which killed 185 people in one of New Zealand´s deadliest disasters.

Monday´s quake, initially put at 7.4 but later upgraded, struck at 12:02am (1102 GMT Sunday). It was only 10 kilometres deep and felt throughout most of the country.

The main tremor was followed by a series of strong aftershocks and there were reports of damaged buildings in the small rural township of Cheviot near the epicentre.

In a brief message the Prime Minister John Key tweeted: "I hope everyone is safe after the earthquake tonight."

The ambulance service said it did not receive any reports of quake-related injuries.

However, the national civil defence organisation, which is in charge of New Zealand´s emergency management said a tsunami was possible.

"The first wave activity may not be the most significant," it said in a bulletin, adding tsunami activity would continue for several hours.

Anna Kaiser, a seismologist with the GNS Science, said the government´s earthquake monitoring service, the quakes were close to the coast.

"They´ve been quite large. We´ve also seen a signal on the tide gauge at Kaikoura which is up to one metre (three feet) so it´s reasonably significant, so people should take this seriously."

However, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said that based on available data "a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected."

In September, a strong 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the east coast of New Zealand, generating a small tsunami, but no significant damage or injuries were reported.

New Zealand is on the boundary of the Australian and Pacific tectonic plates, which form part of the so-called "Ring of Fire", and experiences up to 15,000 tremors a year.New Zealand: Residents in coastal areas of New Zealand fled through the night Monday after a powerful 7.8 earthquake struck just after midnight, triggering a potentially "destructive" tsunami.

The earthquake, centered north of Christchurch in the South Island, was felt throughout the country, causing widespread damage but there were no reports of serious injuries.

As tsunami warning sirens were activated in South Island coastal towns and along the east coast of the North Island, police and emergency workers went door-to-door to evacuate seaside properties.

A "destructive tsunami" with waves up to five metres (16 feet) was possible, the ministry of civil defence, responsible for emergency management in New Zealand, said in a bulletin.

Some early waves were up to two-metres but civil defence warned they could intensify and described the tsunami as "an event of life-threatening or national significance".

The earthquake struck at 12:02am Monday (1102 GMT Sunday) and was 23 kilometres deep, the US Geological Survey said putting the epicentre near the alpine tourist village of Hanmer and the rural township of Cheviot in North Canterbury.

It was one of the most powerful shakes to rock earthquake-prone New Zealand and ignited painful memories for residents in Christchurch which was devastated five years ago by a 6.3 tremor which killed 185 people.

"It was massive and really long," Tamsin Edensor, a mother of two in Christchurch, told AFP, describing the powerful quake as the biggest since the 2011 tremor which was one of New Zealand´s deadliest disasters.

"We were asleep and woken to the house shaking, it kept going and going and felt like it was going to build up."

The main tremor was followed by a series of strong aftershocks and there were reports of damaged houses, roads were cut and rail and ferry services were halted.
In a brief message the Prime Minister John Key tweeted: "I hope everyone is safe after the earthquake tonight."

The ambulance service said it did not receive any reports of serious quake-related injuries however people took to social media to report damage with goods tipped from shelves and shattered glass littering streets.