Large earthquakes rock Christchurch

 LATEST: The shattered city of Christchurch has been rocked by two damaging earthquakes this afternoon, measuring magnitude 6 and 5.5.

The magnitude 5.5 quake struck at 1pm local time (11am AEST), 10 kilometres east of Christchurch at Taylor's Mistake beach, at a depth of 11 kilometres, and sent people scrambling for cover.

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Damage on the corner of Stanmore Road and Worcester Street. Photo: The Pr 

The magnitude 6 quake followed at 2.20pm and was centred 10 kilometres south-east of the city.

Mayor Bob Parker told Radio NZ the second large quake was bigger than the 1pm one.

"Thank God we had evacuated the red zone.

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"We are being enveloped with dust. It is very very scary.

"We need to get a picture of what is really happening and to make a call on where we need to send our essential services."

More masonry has fallen from the ChristChurch Catheral in the second aftershock, sending up large clouds of dust.

There are also reports that another building in Lichfield Street has fallen down.

INJURIES

Six people were taken to Christchurch Hospital with moderately serious injuries due to falling building material after the 1pm earthquake.

St John Ambulance said several ambulances were operating in the city and some on standby.

Buildings were damaged, power was knocked out and new liquefaction has emerged.

A police spokesman said a building on the corner of Stanmore and Worcester streets had collapsed. Police had feared people were trapped, but a search established this was not the case.

Emergency services rescued two people from St John's Church in central Christchurch, fire communications spokeman Iain Lynn said.

The 5.5 magnitude quake followed a 4.3 tremor, 10 kilometres north of Darfield, half an hour earlier, and was followed by a magnitude 4.4 earthquake eight minutes later 10 kilometres south-east of the CBD.

The quake is the latest in a series of dozens of aftershocks to hit Canterbury following the devastating February 22 earthquake where 182 people died, and a damaging magnitude 7.1 earthquake with no fatalities last September.

There were evacuations at Canterbury University, Westfield Riccarton mall and Pak 'n' Save Wainoni.

One worker said items had been thrown from the shelves and the floor was littered with food and broken glass.

"It was pretty freaky. It felt like it was right under the supermarket," she said.

There were reports of a fire on Edgeware Road.

Residents in Beckenham and Merivale said crockery was smashed and shelves were emptied.

More liquefaction has been reported in Christchurch's eastern suburbs.

In the Liggins Street area of Horseshoe Lake, the ground was bubbling, with sand spurting out of the ground, as happened in the first two major quakes, a resident said.

Phone lines were overloading.

Lyttelton Tunnel closed briefly, but has reopened.

Witness accounts

A witness near the tunnel said the quake dislodged rocks from the Port Hills above, some of which looked to be as big as car tyres.

Central Christchurch resident Jon Hicks said "everything came out of the fridge" during the quake.

Other items had fallen over inside his home, but power and water supplies were still working as normal, he said.

Anthony Surynt was working in an electrical workshop in Sydenham, close to the CBD, when the quake hit. He says it came on really fast and lasted for about 10 to 15 seconds. "It was quite quick. I wouldn't be surprised if another building came down."

He says it didn't feel as big as the February 22 quake but compared it to the September quake. Mr Surynt ran out of the building as soon as he felt the earthquake, fearful of all the electrical equipment in the workshop. He has now gone back to work.

Christchurch east MP Aaron Gilmore said he was just getting out of his car when the quake hit and couldn't work out what was going on.

"I could see the ground rise on the road, it was a bit freaky."

There was cracking in the wall of his North New Brighton office that hadn't been there in the last quake and more liquefaction and water.

"I was here for that last 5.5 quake and it definitely felt bigger," Mr Gilmore said.

Twitter user Nathanael Boehm said his two-level house "swayed heaps".

"Was up and ready to leap out a window if it started coming down.

"That would have been bloody close to a 6 magnitude quake. Heart going mental. Hope everyone ok!"

Other Twitter users also reported smashed items in their houses and car alarms being set off by the aftershock.

Richard Derham reported walking through the Arts Centre car park and seeing "a couple of hundred cars start dancing".