Waikato and Auckland were rocked by the M3.9 earthquake in Te Aroha

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The earthquake occurred just before 7 am, startling people in bed, at home, and in the cowsheds (Stuff drawing).

The M3.9 earthquake jolted people awake across the Waikato and Auckland.

Geonet has received more than 5,000 reports of the shallow quake that jolted 5km south of Te Aroha at 6.56am on Thursday.

Glenda Bailey was working on the computer at Te Aroha and thought someone had shot the chair.

“It was a good shake.”

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It got louder and louder, and I wondered what the hell was going on.

My son and grandchildren who were in the cowshed felt it too. It was definitely a wake-up call for many.”

The area has low seismic activity with only four earthquakes larger than M3 between Tauranga and Hamilton in the past 10 years, according to GeoNet.

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GeoNet said Thursday’s quake was the biggest shake the region has seen since 2014 and a good reminder that earthquakes can happen anywhere in New Zealand, so it pays to be prepared.

Across the area in Ōtorohanga, Shayna Richards thought a truck was moving her home.

Living on State Highway 3, they are used to heavy vehicles making their presence felt.

“I thought it was just another truck that was passing by… until my bed was still rolling after the truck was gone for good measure.

“I just kind of sat down and went, it was definitely more than just a truck going by.”

Just 50 miles northeast, Shelley Conder in Morrisville said it was “scary.”

“The whole house shook and woke my partner up, I’ve never seen him move so fast.

“I was expecting cracks in the house or yard, but fortunately there weren’t.

“My daughter-in-law grabbed her daughter from her high chair and yelled at my son ‘Quick Baby, there is an earthquake’.”

Earthquakes are fairly uncommon in the area, but GNS seismologist John Riscoe is a good reminder that in New Zealand “you can still get bigger and more destructive earthquakes no matter what.”

“Most earthquakes don’t actually occur on any known fault line or fault line we’ve drawn before. That’s certainly the case with this one as well.

“Actually, an earthquake that occurs on a fault line that has been mapped before, will generally be larger earthquakes, of M5.5 and up. Those are the ones we mapped before because you need to have a fairly large fault line and a little bit of movement on it. before we can map them.”

Tom Lee/Staff

The quake struck 5km south of Te Aroha at 6.56am on Thursday (file photo).

Although the earthquakes could not have been predicted, Risako said by far the most likely scenario for the particular area is a M3.9 earthquake or possibly slow aftershocks, but that was about it.

“Some places are going to have more earthquakes, like the Wellington area or the east coast, because there are weaker spots and crater pressure builds up, and the farther you get from the (tectonic) plate boundaries — the northwest and the Waikato, you get fewer earthquakes.

“But the pressure can still build up, and sometimes you’ll get earthquakes.

“I am not afraid that this is a sign of a larger earthquake.”

New Zealand lies at the boundary between the Australian plate and the Pacific plate – the North Island is part of the Australian plate, while the Pacific plate pushes or subducts the Australian plate.

Riscaw explains that as two plates collide and push one against the other, it creates litter in the crust itself.

“The South Island is opposite and most of the island is part of the Pacific plate and the Australian plate is trying to push.”

Share your experience with Thursday’s earthquake in the comments below.

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