A person has been spotted surfing at Scarborough Beach despite a national tsunami warning. Video / Supplied
A tsunami advisory has not deterred some surfers from testing their luck in Christchurch.
A person was captured surfing the waves on Scarborough beach this morning.
An emergency text alert was sent out to New Zealanders on Wednesday evening, warning people to stay away from the coast href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/live-updates-new-zealand-wakes-after-russia-earthquake-causes-pacific-tsunamis/5XEADAPGNVHVDNFMVNHIDOHXMU/" target="_blank" rel="" title="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/live-updates-new-zealand-wakes-after-russia-earthquake-causes-pacific-tsunamis/5XEADAPGNVHVDNFMVNHIDOHXMU/">after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Russia.
“Strong currents and surges can injure and drown people,” the emergency alert read.
“There is a danger to swimmers, surfers, people fishing, and anyone in or near the water close to the shore.
One person was seen attempting to go for a surf, despite the rough conditions.
Canterbury’s Civil Defence Emergency Management controller, James Thompson, said flouting the rules was unwise.
“We can still see strange and unusual currents and know the way the tsunami is behaving.
Despite a tsunami warning people continue to walk along Takapuna beach on the morning of July 31. Photo / Corey Fleming
“It’ll still impact parts of New Zealand, particularly the East Coast, for the next 12 hours, if not longer.
“The advice would be that you’re definitely not out surfing,” Brown said.
Thomson said if people were unsure of what the rules were, they should visit the NEMA website.
“Each local council’s Civil Defence website also has advice on what to do in these situations.”
The Christchurch City Council also advised residents to be “particularly cautious” in the low-lying areas at the heads of bays in Banks Peninsula, the Avon Heathcote Estuary and the Waimakariri River mouth.
This morning, several people were spotted walking along Takapuna, despite warnings.
A young couple came down to the beach before their Pilates class.
The pair said they were aware of the tsunami alert, but since the earthquake’s epicentre was so far away, they weren’t concerned.
Massey University senior lecturer in emergency management Dr Lauren Vinnell said it was a “tough balance between not alerting too much that people become tired of them and pay less attention in future, but not alerting too little so that people feel they haven’t been adequately warned”.
“One way to avoid complacency when people do receive alerts but don’t experience danger personally is to encourage them to view these alerts as practice so that they will be better prepared to respond next time.”
Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell said emergency alerts played a vital role in keeping people safe.
“I apologise that people have been woken up through the alert, but I make no apology for the fact that we’re taking the responsibility seriously.
“I can tell you right now that if we hadn’t done that and there’d been half a dozen people swept off the beach this morning when they were walking their dogs at 6.30 and had been drowned, then I’d be standing here being asked why we didn’t use our national alert system.”
