Magnitude 4.6 earthquake south of Taupō felt in Hawke’s Bay

Geonet recorded the shaking as originating from a point 45 kilometres south east of Taupō at a depth of 38 kilometres at 9.57am. Image / Geonet

A magnitude 4.6 earthquake between Taupō and Napier has been felt by over a thousand people, mostly in Hawke’s Bay.

Geonet recorded the shaking as originating from a point 45 kilometres south east of Taupō at a depth of 38 kilometres at 9.57am.

More than 1700 people had reported feeling the earthquake only minutes later as of 11.30am, most rating it light to moderate in strength.

A swarm of four weak earthquakes hit Central Hawke’s Bay earlier on Saturday and Sunday last weekend.

The strongest of those was a 3.1 magnitude earthquake at a depth of 37 kilometres, within 5 kilometres of Waipukurau, while the other three ranged in strength from 2.2 to 2.3 and were near Pōrangahau.