Earthquakes shake Auckland Region

Auckland was rocked by three earthquakes last night, the strongest measuring 4.5 on the Richter scale.
The tremors, which are unusual for Auckland, were described as shallow quakes and were felt as far afield as Te Atatu and Kawau Island.
The smaller earthquake at 8.24pm measured 3.7, the second (4.5) was at 9pm, and the third (3.8) was at 11.23.
The quakes were the largest in Auckland since 1970, when the city was shaken by a 4.7 quake centred in the Coromandel.
Meanwhile, quake-hardened Wellingtonians weren't fazed by a 4.4-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Picton, which was felt in the capital at 12.41pm yesterday.
GNS received "five or six" calls from concerned residents to report that quake, seismologist Bryan Field said.
The Auckland cluster of quakes, however, had resulted in about 1500 reports to the GNS website. "I think because Auckland don't have as many...it's a bit more scary," he said.
Volcano surveillance co-ordinator Brad Scott, of GNS Science, said quakes were felt on average every three to five years in Auckland.

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