Magnitude 6.3 Earthquake hit New Zealand January 20, 2014

Breaking News: Magnitude 6.3 Earthquake rocks New Zealand January 20, 2014. Magnitude 6.3 earthquake centered in the North Island 115 km northeast of Wellington said US Geological Survey. Damages of the earthquake are being assessed by the Government and casualties will still be verified. The people in New Zealand are advised to take necessary precautions as there will be more aftershocks to follow.

The quake, which struck at 3:52pm (0252 GMT), was centered in the North Island about 115 kilometers (71 miles) northeast of the capital city Wellington, the US Geological Survey said.

Damage reports
A central ambulance communications spokesman said two people had suffered "very minor'' injuries due to falls during the quake. No further details were available.

There are still no reports of serious injury.

Emergency services have reported damage to roads and buildings in the lower North Island.

Most of the damage was reported in the Wairarapa and Palmerston North areas.

Fire Service central communications shift manager Mike Wanoa said there were no reports of major damage so far, but firefighters were "extremely busy''.

"The earthquake has been reasonably major in the Masterton-Eketahuna area, so we're getting multiple calls to all sorts of things at the moment, but we're right in the middle of it now.''

There were reports of fires, alarm activations and lines down. A lot of the damage was in the Wairarapa and Palmerston North areas, Mr Wanoa said.

Inspector Mike Coleman of police central communications said there were reports of damage to houses in Eketahuna, including broken windows, collapsed walls and fallen chimneys.

The number of reports of damage remained unknown.

"Obviously some houses have been damaged,'' Mr Coleman said.

"Windows have been smashed and crockery has been thrown around the place - the usual sort of movement with earthquakes.''
photo from: http://www.nzherald.co.nz

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