Christchurch earthquake: Truckie in tunnel when quake hit

Lyttelton tunnel. File photo / Sarah Ivey

Driving through the Lyttelton tunnel during Tuesday's massive Christchurch earthquake is something Rakaia truck driver Paul Counsell will never forget.

The "violent" shaking started when he was halfway through and he had just kept on driving as debris fell around him, he told the Timaru Herald.

"It was pitch black and we were going sideways and up and down. I've been in all sorts of situations, black ice, you name it, but it was nothing like this," he said.

"I just carried on through as fast as I could. There was no damage to the truck, I just tried to hold on to it."

Mr Counsell drives through the tunnel up to 15 times a day and said while another truck had got through yesterday, he was pleased it wasn't him.

"It was unreal. I wouldn't like to go through it again, it was quite terrifying to be honest, anything could have happened," he told the newspaper.

- NZPA