Helicopters from US and Malaysia will help out in Kaikoura, says PM John Key.

Farmers are sharing cow sheds and generators as they try to carry out the daily business of running their farms.

The alpine tourist hotspot of Hanmer Springs, usually a thriving, buzzing place, resembles a ghost town.

Almost $40,000 has been donated to help a Christchurch family whose seaside home was burgled after they evacuated during yesterday's earthquake and tsunami warning.

The first word comes of the fate of three cows trapped after yesterday's quake.

Richie McCaw, who has been airlifting stranded tourists out of Kaikoura, says the devastation from the air looks "pretty crazy".

Aftershocks continue around Kaikoura this morning.

A helicopter pilot says he could smell the fresh earth uncovered by the Kaikoura earthquake hundreds of metres in the air as he flew above the scene.

A Dutch tourist waiting to be evacuated from Kaikoura says the people of the earthquake-damaged-town are her heroes.

Public transport is running again in Wellington today and some roads in the South Island should start to reopen.

'Long, scary night' for family as the earth continues to roll.

Three cows left standing on an island of land have drawn international attention.

A historic homestead is in tatters and the four other properties on a north Canterbury sheep and beef farm were damaged in today's

Kiwis have rallied behind the family burgled after fleeing their seaside home in Christchurch this morning, with almost $20,000 fundraised.

Students who sat a digital version of NCEA Level 1 English last week have been offered a derived grade following technical problems with the exam pilot.

The Clarence River has burst its banks, with residents being told to move to high ground immediately, as aftershocks continue to rock the country.

Three cows have been luckily - or unluckily - stranded on an island of land, surrounded by collapsed earth from landslides near Kaikoura.

COMMENT: Among the bricks and shattered glass, we feared the worst. It appeared as if a hand grenade had been tossed inside the stylish colonial cottage.

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters is calling for tough new laws around looting after three houses were burgled in the aftermath of this morning's quake.

North Canterbury farmers are rallying together by sharing cow sheds and lending generators as they try to carry out the daily business

The aftermath of this morning's earthquake has left the home of Newstalk ZB political editor Barry Soper trashed.

Students at an Auckland school were 20 minutes into their history scholarship exam this morning before it was cancelled.

When Tess Prentice got tossed out of bed by the giant earthquake that destroyed her cliff-top family home, she thought it was the "end of the world".

Sez Nathan and her family watched as the walls of their Waiau home crumbled around them in the early hours of this morning.

Scientists have debunked a prediction that a major earthquake could hit the South Pacific on November 14.

Police are investigating three burglaries following this morning's earthquake in Christchurch.

Images are starting to come out of Kaikoura where widespread damage and one death has occurred.

As New Zealand wakes up to reports of the series of earthquakes to have shaken the country overnight the rest of the world is also coming to grips with the news.

Scientists investigating the mechanics of the earthquake say it faulted in the same way the February 22, 2011, Christchurch Earthquake did.