A SUPERQUAKE STRIKES SOUTH-WEST TIP OF NEW ZEALAND!!

A  SUPER EARTHQUAKE STRIKES NEW ZEALAND'S WEST COAST....


DEAR ALL
A POWERFUL 7.8 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE HAS STRIKED THE WEST COAST OF NEW ZEALAND...

TSUNAMI WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR AUSTRALIA.

HERE IS A NEWS REPORT--

A 7.8-magnitude earthquake has shaken New Zealand, prompting a tsunami warning for parts of the Pacific Ocean.

The quake struck off the south-west tip of New Zealand, 161km (100 miles) west of Invercargill at a depth of 33km (20 miles), the US Geological Survey said.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii issued a "non-expanding regional tsunami warning" for nearby areas.

There were no immediate reports of damage or any evidence that a tsunami had formed after the quake.

"An earthquake of this size has the potential to generate a destructive tsunami that can strike coastlines in the region near the epicentre within minutes to hours," the warning centre said in a statement.

The quake was detected at 0922GMT (2122 local time), reports said.

New Zealand's Herald newspaper said the quake was felt across the South Island.

People ran from restaurants in Queenstown as buildings shook, the newspaper said. Power and phone lines were severed in some places.

One South Island resident, Simon Darby, told the newspaper the quake lasted about two-and-a-half minutes.

"I lived in Tokyo for three years so I know what large quakes are like. Even though we are maybe 400km from the epicentre this was easily the longest and biggest I have ever felt," he said.

"It wasn't very violent, more of a rolling feel. But it had a power about it - I ran straight outside into the car park."

THE AKSHAY'S GYAAN SEISMOLOGY TEAM HAS BEEN CALLED FOR AN URGENT MEETING

AKSHAY