Residents shaken and stirred as big quake rocks city | Manawatu-Wanganui News | Local News in Manawatu-Wanganui

A powerful earthquake was the talk of the town in Wanganui yesterday.

Measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale, the quake was centred 30km south-west of Wanganui in one of the more active seismic areas off the coast. The quake's size and 30km depth gave the tremor strength that shook much of the lower North Island. The GNS data website initially recorded the shake as a magnitude 5.0, but later upgraded it to 5.1.

Within 30 minutes of the quake more than 340 people had reported feeling it on the GNS data website and within an hour 681 had registered.

By 6pm, 1065 reports had been filed.

In September 2008, 1600 people reported feeling a 5.1 quake that struck 60km south-west of Wanganui. According to GNS, that was the most for any felt in New Zealand that year.

GNS data technician Jennifer Coppola said shortly after yesterday's tremor, three Wanganui people reported it was "slightly damaging", while 36 said it was "strong".

The GNS scale regards "slightly damaging" as a quake that has been felt by all, causes alarm and furniture and appliances may move on smooth floors. Items may also fall from walls and shelves. Slight non-structural damage to buildings may also occur.

Clive Rivers, proprietor of Wanganui backpackers Braemare House in Plymouth St, said pictures moved on walls and water in his aquarium overflowed.

"I've just finished cleaning up the mess and luckily most of my international visitors had checked out."

However, Wanganui police and Fire Service said they had not received any immediate reports of damage.

Wanganui fire station administration assistant Gwenda Nicolle said: "It was very loud to start with and it rolled towards the end. It certainly wasn't pleasant. The fire station doesn't usually shake but it did this time."

The quake even attracted traffic on the online social networking site, Twitter.

Stephen Brandon said on Twitter: "Quite big earthquake in Wanganui, prolonged, heart in mouth, actually left the house."

Ruth Smithers wrote: "Seriously huge earthquake in Wanganui just now."

Even the normally unflappable Wanganui Mayor and radio jock, Michael Laws, was prompted to comment during his RadioLive talkback show yesterday.

"That was an absolute beauty. The studio rocked and I mean literally rocked," he said.

Mr Laws continued to describe the quake on his show.

"I've been in one of those ghost trains where ... you know where you're in a ghost train and sometimes they flip the levels to make you be unbalanced ... that was what we're seeing in reality," he said.

"My studio walls leapt inward by at least a foot, I'm not exaggerating. They came towards me, they went out, they came toward me, they went out."

Mr Laws said he was lucky to be higher up in his building.

"I'm on the third floor of the building. It's an old brick building built circa 1920 I suppose. Gosh I don't know if it would have been any worse at ground level. But certainly it was a beauty."