Survival kits fly out of store

Shoppers have all but drained a Masterton retailer of survival kits in the wake of a severe earthquake that rocked Wairarapa at the weekend.

Kerrin Maulder, Moore Wilson's Masterton acting manager, said the retailer on Monday sold about a half dozen of the kits on the heels of a 6.5 magnitude earthquake that rattled the region about 5.20pm on Sunday.

Yesterday there was only a single kit left in the store, which was to be restocked with the two-person emergency packs by late afternoon.

She said they had sold about 50 survival kits out of the Dixon St store since the deadly 6.3 magnitude earthquake that left 185 people dead in Christchurch in February, 2011. There also had been five 23-litre plastic containers sold yesterday for water storage, she said, although the store was still well-stocked with similar containers.

Brent Stewart, general manager of Mitre 10 Mega in Masterton, said there had been a similar run on two-person survival packs and large plastic containers on Monday.

"There was a huge uptake on all those types of products and on water storage containers as well and it hasn't really stopped," he said.

A special emergency kit stand had been erected just inside the front doors that also featured a range of individual emergency products.

The survival packs, which also come in a larger size to cater for four people, sell for about $69 and include a first aid kit, emergency blanket, torch/radio, utility knife, light sticks, water purification tablets, and a deck of playing cards.