Thousands report feeling magnitude 5.3 earthquake

Thousands reported feeling a magnitude 5.3 earthquake located in the Tasman region on October 30, 2022. Photo / Geonet

A moderate earthquake centred in the Tasman region struck this afternoon at 12.35pm.

Thousands of people in the lower North Island and upper South Island reported feeling the magnitude 5.3 earthquake.

The quake was 53km deep and located 30km south-west of St Arnaud.

A Sunday afternoon shake for folks in the upper South Island and lower North Island, due to a moderately deep (54km) M5.3 that occurred near St Arnaud. It caused moderate shaking, and we have received over 3,700 felt reports. More here: https://t.co/4kbe4AS1yR pic.twitter.com/fcGzUWx3P1

— GeoNet (@geonet) October 30, 2022

The majority of people who recorded feeling the earthquake on GeoNet’s portal said it felt light, 240 people reported it felt moderate, 19 reported it was strong and 3 said it felt extreme.

- More to come