A Terrifying 6.3 Magnitude Earthquake Hit Christchurch, New Zealand

 
A terrifying earthquake hit Christchurch, New Zealand. The quake occurred at 12:51 p.m.,NZ time today, February 22, 2011, a busy Tuesday. The epicenter was relatively shallow – just 3 miles deep – and close to about 10 kilometers South of New Zealand’s second largest city. Christchurch has a 340,000 population. This is the second major earthquake that hit Christchurch since September last year.

As I watch the breaking news at Ten News, it was reported that there were unconfirmed fatalities, injuries, people trapped in the buildings. Live pictures showed the city center was enveloped with dust and smoke. Ongoing rescues of people trapped in buildings and many cars under rubble. The Christchurch famous landmark building, The Christchurch Cathedral, was severely damaged. There were reported road cuts.

Most of Christchurch at the moment has no power and with limited telephone lines. Several aftershocks were reported.

It was really catastrophic and the damage was massive. A state of emergency has been declared.

Here’s a video  or footage uploaded at Youtube showing the 6.3 Magnitude Earthquake that hit Christchurch.