Massive devastation after 7.1 quake hits New Zealand
World
Massive devastation after 7.1 quake hits New Zealand
A powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake caused widespread devastation in New Zealand's second largest city of Christchurch with officials saying it was extremely lucky no one was killed. The quake struck just before dawn when few people were on the streets sending building facades crashing to the ground, crushing parked cars and showering the roads with shattered glass. Frightened residents fled from their homes to find streets covered in rubble and glass, but in the city of 340,000 only two people were seriously injured. Many buildings were structurally damaged, and there were gas leaks, ruptured water and sewage mains, collapsed bridges and cuts to electricity supplies. A state of emergency was declared in the city with people being warned to stay away from damaged buildings for fear of further collapses as severe aftershocks continued to rock the city. The quake, initially recorded at a magnitude of 7.4, at a depth of five kilometres (three miles) some 45 kilometres west of Christchurch, the US Geological Survey said. A swarm of aftershocks continued to shake the area, while electricity supplies were cut to about half of the city.
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