Earthquake felt in Wellington
- Publish date
- Friday, 6 Jun 2014, 4:01PM
Updated 4:39pm: This afternoon's central North Island earthquake was both shallower and stronger than first thought.
GeoNet has revised its readings, now saying the quake just before 4 o'clock was 5.1 magnitude, 76 kilometres deep, but still centred 15 kilometres west of Ohakune.
The organisation says the quake was a "subduction zone" event, so felt over a long distance.
Witnesses report having felt the tremor as far away as Nelson, Wellington, and New Plymouth.
Motorists in the Hutt Valley and Wainuiomata described being on the road, as the quake was happening.
"The whole car started rocking, rolling for five, six seconds."
"Now the car's shaking.
"I felt like someone was pushing the side of the car and rocking it."
The fire service's central communication centre hasn't received any reports from people further to the quake.
Political Editor Barry Soper was in what's something of a bunker at Parliament when felt a couple of strong jolts.
Our political editor Barry Soper felt it at the Beehive in Wellington.
"I didn't feel the first one I must say, my colleague said to me 'did you feel the earthquake', I said 'no'.
"The second one, I certainly felt it, so it doesn't sound as though there's been much damage done though.
"It was just over five on the Richter scale, which is pretty strong, but certainly we felt it here."
The earthquake was only just felt by some in New Plymouth.
It was slow rocking motion.
