Another earthquake in Christchurch
 

5.8 magnitude.

Awful news for a town which can't take a trick ATM.

Best wishes to any CWers and their families who may be effected.

This is awful. :(

Hope there are minimal injuries.

****ty news :( All the best anyone on here affected in any way.

From a geological point of view is a quake of this size expected in the year or two after the first one?

I don't think this was unexpected, there just hasn't been one for a while and the timing is atrocious.

They're currently saying no serious injuries, which is great news, but it sounds like there's extensive liquefaction out east again. :(

Best wishes to any CWers and all other kiwis in the city. No reports of injuries yet that I've found since getting home ten minutes ago, which is good news.

From what I understand from the GNS bloke who came in to uni to give a talk to us, the fault system in the Canterbury area has been dormant for a few thousand years, but the first earthquake set it moving again. This is a long term thing unfortunately.

EDIT: apparently there is a school of thought in GNS that expects these size of quakes to be quite a regular occurrence for the next century in the Canterbury area. This presents a problem where they have a race to build everything to appropriate standard before a quake tips it all over again...

I have no idea how widespread that thought is though. I'm just an undergrad spouting what my lecturers and random GNS peeps tell me.

+1

Fortunately no casualties reported, but yet another massive 'shake-up' (excuse the pun) for the city at the worst possible time & more bad times for business owners (particularly retailers).

Isn't there some talk of moving the whole city because these quakes are expected to continue.

Still saying no serious injuries ATM.

Tell you what though, as ****ty as these quakes are for Cantabrians, it's a ****ing miracle more people haven't been injured or killed. Touch wood, we've only had one really bad quake.

Was listening on the radio and sounded like there was a second tremor during the report, some unconfirmed reports of injuries as well.

Really bad stuff and what a terrible time to happen.

Just waiting for the reading of the big aftershock reported at about 3.15pm to come through, many on the radio are suggesting that was even bigger than the 5.8 Mag at 2pm....

5.1 they're saying here

@ Zinzan

Nah it was 5.3, but I still can't find out what depth it is.

****ing hell at the depths of these bastards though. Since the first quake the vast majority have been very, very shallow.

Here it says 8km for the initial quake (and 5.8, not 5.3) Edit 2, oh, ok, you mean the aftershock....