Great Earthquakes In Diverse Places
26 December 2010 Last updated at 05:06 ET
New Zealand's Christchurch hit by strong Earthquake
aftershocks
Speaking from Christchurch, Radio New Zealand's Ian Telfer told
the BBC it was pure luck that no-one was injured
A series of strong aftershocks from a September earthquake has
rattled Christchurch in New Zealand on one of the busiest shopping
days of the year.
The most powerful tremor was 4.9 magnitude and its impact was
magnified by its proximity to the city centre.
Buildings were damaged, power supplies temporarily cut and a large
shopping centre was evacuated.
The city of 370,000 people was hit by a 7.1-magnitude earthquake
three months ago, causing widespread destruction.
Two people were seriously injured in that quake, and older
buildings including some landmarks were destroyed.
Scientists say the tremors which continue to shake the area are
related to the September quake and warn they could continue for
some time.
On Saturday, a 7.3 magnitude quake struck under the sea off
Vanuatu, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.
'Violent'
Correspondents say it was a remarkable stroke of luck that no-one
was hurt in Sunday's tremor.
It struck at 1030 (2130 Saturday GMT) within 5km (three miles) of
Christchurch at a depth of 12km, said GNS Science monitoring
agency.
Shop fronts were shattered and in some places masonry could be
seen littering the streets.
Large parts of the central business district were cordoned off as
police assessed damage to buildings.
"To witness that first hand, it really scared the living daylights
out of me," one witness told reporters. "Buildings were exploding,
and I thought it was glass but it was rock!"
One resident, Roger Cleave, who owns a music shop, said the latest
shocks did more damage than September's quake.
"When we had the [earthquake in September] we had very little
damage to stock. I think only one guitar fell off the wall and a
couple of other items fell over. But this one was a lot more
violent and a lot more stuff has fallen off."
A Civil Defence Emergency Operations Centre, to co-ordinate the
response of emergency services, has been set up.