Quake rocks New Zealand, but no immediate sign of damage

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 03, 2012
Quake rocks New Zealand, but no immediate sign of damage

Wellington - A magnitude-5.7 earthquake rocked central New Zealand early Friday but seismologists said it was centred 200 kilometres below the earth, so was unlikely to cause damage.

 

The quake, centred 160 kilometres north-west of the capital Wellington in the Taranaki province, was widely felt across the North Island and as far south as Christchurch and Westport on opposite sides of the South Island, the state Geonet organisation said.
 
The quake at 7 am (1800GMT Thursday) rocked a multi-storey office block near parliament in Wellington, the Stuff news website reported, but police said there were no immediate reports of damage.//DPA