North Island of New Zealand rocked by magnitude 4.7 earthquake near Wellington

New Zealand’s North Island has been rocked by a magnitude 4.7 earthquake detected near the capital.

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake has rocked New Zealand’s North Island, shaking Wellington right before the first cricket Test match between Australia and New Zealand of the year.

The earthquake began at 5.18am on Thursday, 5km north of Upper Hutt and about 38km north of Wellington.

Earthquake aggregate website GeoNet said the depth of the quake was 23km.

It described the shaking as “moderate”, receiving more than 11,000 felt reports from citizens after it happened.

About 3700 of these reports called the quake weak, 5000 called it light, and 2000 called it moderate – with only about 150 calling it strong.

The earthquake was 23km deep and was felt from Whanganui to Wellington. Picture: GeoNet

The Test match is continuing as planned.

“Remember, Drop, Cover and Hold is the right action to take in an earthquake and when in bed, cover your head,” GeoNet said on social media.

An early shake awake for those in the lower North Island this morning with a M4.7 earthquake 5km north of Upper Hutt. The moderate quake was 23km deep and we received over 10,000 felt reports. https://t.co/bjAqeagYKnpic.twitter.com/RWtUmv7FTt

— GeoNet (@geonet) February 28, 2024

Seismology Research Centre chief scientist Adam Pascale said the depth of the earthquake meant it would “probably not cause too much damage” apart from cosmetic, noting that New Zealand regularly expects earthquakes across the country.

He called the event “a good reminder (for people) to refresh their memory” on safety procedures.

Within an hour of the earthquake, the same area received a light and weak aftershock at magnitudes of 3.6 and 3.0.

Mr Pascale said depending on the area, aftershocks from a quake above 4.0 magnitude could last from days to months.

“You’ll see a pattern within the next few days,” he said.

Cricket writer Bharat Sundaresan at the first Test match between Australia and New Zealand, which continued after the quake. Picture: X / Bharat Sundaresan

Cricket writer Bharat Sundaresan attended the Test match after the quake, which didn’t delay the game.

“Can’t believe I slept through an earthquake,” he said.

Former New Zealand cricketer Grant Elliott joked to SENZ Radio that “hopefully it woke up the Aussies really early, they’re a little bit tired this morning”.