A Kiwi couple living in the Japanese city hit by two earthquakes have been huddled in their car with their three young children for the past two nights.

Parts of the US now face a man-made ground-shaking hazard equal to the famously unstable terrain of California.

The tremor struck at 4.12pm, was 15km deep and was centred 50km north-west of the South Island resort town.

GeoNet said the four tremors were all close to Porangahau at a depth of 20 kilometres or less.

A small earthquake has struck tonight near Chrstchurch.

Two earthquakes struck the South Island late last night.

Cantabrians went to bed a little shaken last night after a 4.4 magnitude earthquake struck just after 11pm.

A moderate earthquake has rocked the Whanganui region this afternoon.

The traffic signal fault in Christchurch which caused significant delays this morning in the CBD has now been fixed.

New Zealand pays respects on fifth anniversary of Christchurch.

INTERACTIVE: Christchurch hit with more than 10,000 quakes since 2011

Loved ones of those who died are sticking close to each other as they lay flowers at the site of the greatest loss of life during the 2011 February quake.

As she lay in the hospital bed, bracing for emergency surgery, Kim Haugh was already petrified. And then the shaking began.

Five years after a shallow, savage earthquake flattened Christchurch, the story of its central business district is a "tale of two cities".

A crowd is gathering at Cathedral Square in Christchurch, ahead of a march to vent frustration at earthquake insurance problems.

A magnitude 4.4 earthquake has struck near Mt Cook this morning.

A magnitude 3.5 earthquake centred 10km west of Christchurch has shaken a city still reeling from a larger quake last Sunday.

The 17km-deep magnitude 3.8 quake struck 10km east of Christchurch at 8.22pm. More than 500 felt reports have already been submitted to GeoNet.

A new study finds that some people are battling anxiety and depression more than a year and a half after the Christchurch earthquake.

Christchurch has been shaken by a moderate earthquake this evening, just days after the city was rocked by a strong 5.7 magnitude tremor.

A 4.3 magnitude earthquake has rocked Southland this morning 70km southwest of Tuatapere.

Twenty three people reported feeling the magnitude 6.0 quake which struck 160km southwest of Snares Islands at 8.28am.

Rocks fell from cliffs not far from houses in Sumner and Redcliffs in the 5.7 aftershock but one expert said the most significant damage would be psychological.

Christchurch resident Diane Mawhinney has described the latest blow to her already written-off house as a "kick in the guts".

Nearly 500 insurance claims have been made to the Earthquake Commission since yesterday's violent earthquake in Canterbury.

Source: Jared Waddams, Helicam Pro