Magnitude 5.1 earthquake shakes northern parts of New Zealand

A resident 10km from Te Aroha had items in her house crumbling and crumbling after a strong earthquake struck the area on January 4. Photo: Introduction

The northern part of New Zealand experienced a strong earthquake this morning.

The 5.1-magnitude quake struck at a depth of 7 km, 5 km south of Te Aroha in the Waikato region, at 5:39 am.

More than 20,000 people reported feeling tremors in nearby areas, including Hamilton, Turanga, Auckland and Rotorua.

“When an earthquake occurs, there is always a small chance that a larger earthquake will follow,” GeoNet said on its website. “However, the most likely scenario is that there will be a number of smaller aftershocks that will fade over time.”

The early morning earthquake was followed by nine aftershocks in the same area, the largest of which had an average magnitude of 3.9 at 11.21 am.

A shallow M3.9 follower felt more than 2.9 thousand people across the Waikato and Coromandel. This was most likely on the same fault system as M5.1 this morning and M3.9 last week.

We expect aftershocks like these to occur over the coming hours and days, with decreasing frequency and magnitude. pic.twitter.com/pQZn4ODifm

— GeoNet (@geonet) January 3, 2023

About 8,000 people reported feeling the first quake, and about 4,000 people reported feeling the second.

Lana from Tauranga told the Summer Times that she thought it was strangely quiet this morning, as there usually are birdsong coming from her garden.

Then all of a sudden, there was this massive shaking and I thought ‘Oh, I’m just going to ride this jolt’, but then I heard everything pounding in the house and then it got a little bit stronger and it seemed like the crystal in China government started shaking like crazy.

“There was a kind of twist and rock in the earthquake and I thought it was getting dangerous, I thought I had to get out and get under the door frame and as soon as I jumped, it stopped.”

She said it felt similar to the 6.5-magnitude Edgecombe earthquake of 1987 that hit the Bay of Plenty.

“I was worried because he was getting this kind of fascia, and that kind of sprain going into him.”

Truck driver Darren Fire said his 25-tonne truck shook badly in the first quake.

“The truck started shaking violently and I thought ‘Uh what’s going on here’, but literally, right before that, on the farm across the road from the yard, a bunch of dogs started barking and I thought ‘what’s bothering them'” Within a couple of minutes, it played on GeoNet.

“[It] To be honest in the living light of day.”

On the east coast, Pawanui resident Christine Harrison said it was the strongest earthquake she had ever felt.

“It was quite a shock in that it made me grab onto the edge of the bed to really hold on to it but as soon as it started, it stopped.”

A resident 10km from Te Aroha had items in her house crumbling and crumbling after a strong earthquake struck the area on January 4. Photo: Introduction

It follows a 3.9-magnitude earthquake in the same area last week.

GeoNet said they were likely on the same fault system, near the Kerepehi fault which is part of the Hauraki fault zone.

She said this was a good reminder to always be prepared for a major earthquake.

GeoNet also has an app on Google Play and the App Store for Apple, which provides details and notifications about earthquakes, volcanoes, and geographic events across the country.

GeoNet said only six quakes larger than magnitude 3.0 have occurred between Tauranga and Hamilton in the past 10 years.

GeoNet said there has been strong shaking in the past with a 4.9-magnitude earthquake in Te Aroha in 1972.

A 1972 bulletin, published by the New Zealand Society of Earthquake Engineering, reported a magnitude 5.1 earthquake in the area, with damage limited to the area but also being felt as far as Manjakino and Whakatane.

It was also said that there were many aftershocks in the following month.

The earthquakes are likely to be on the same fault system, as the area was last hit by a strong earthquake in 1972 with the M4.9 Te Aroha earthquake, a reminder that earthquakes can occur anywhere in New Zealand at any time. In the event of a major earthquake: fall, cover and hold. pic.twitter.com/vnuJgo5k9C

— GeoNet (@geonet) January 3, 2023

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