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The lower North Island has been hit by a second big earthquake in three days, sending people scrambling for cover and leaving others skittish after Canterbury's huge shake.
The 5.3-magnitude quake hit Hawkes Bay at 4.18pm yesterday and was felt as far away as Wellington.
"It was quite a jolt,"
said Central Hawkes Bay District Council media officer Shelley Burne-Field, who was in a meeting at Te Aute College when the ground moved.
She said the quake threw books off desks.
"The younger kids were quite nonchalant about it but the older ones certainly started heading under the desks."
In Hastings, a police spokesman said he was on a third floor "and I can tell you it was rocking".
Central Hawkes Bay District Council emergency management officer Bruce Kitto said the quake and a 5.2-magnitude shake on Tuesday weren't "chicken feed" and had left people feeling "quite jumpy".
"They are certainly getting twitchy; just the whole package is upsetting, I think. They'd be quite keen if there weren't any more."
Aftershocks were continuing in Canterbury last night, including a 4-magnitude shake 10km south-west of Christchurch at 6.30.
The aftershocks have prompted dozens of families to pack up and head for more stable places.
Resident Kelly Jennings tells of the three big aftershocks on Sunday night.
"That made up my mind ... I just packed up a bag for everyone and left."
She and her three children are now in Blenheim. Her husband, Chris, has had to stay in Christchurch because of his job.
As workmen prepared to remove barriers that have kept central Christchurch off-limits since Saturday's 7.1-magnitude earthquake, officials have warned it could take months, if not years, for the town of Kaiapoi to recover.
The pain in the North Canterbury town was exacerbated yesterday by news that its New World supermarket will have to close because of damage, leaving 86 people out of work.
New World's owner, Foodstuffs New Zealand, and the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce are working to find them all new jobs.
Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker said every house in the city should have water by the end of the week, but there were problems with wastewater in some areas.
Portable toilets have been installed in streets where needed.
Kaiapoi's town centre opened yesterday for the first time since the quake, but a curfew remained in place last night.
Civil Defence controller Bruce Thompson said it could be years before the town's shattered sewer and water systems were completely restored.
Nearly 400 homes in and around Kaiapoi are under restricted access or considered unsafe.
- ADDITIONAL REPORTING: NZPA
