Short, sharp 3.5 jolt rattles New Plymouth

New Plymouth residents have been shaken by a short, sharp earthquake this morning. Image / GeoNet

New Plymouth residents have been shaken by a short, sharp earthquake this morning.

The magnitude 3.5 quake struck at a depth of 8km, about 5km northwest of the city, at 9.21am.

Within 10 minutes, nearly 1000 people had reported feeling the jolt, which lasted just several seconds.

Shit, bit of a shake here in New Plymouth! #eqnz

— Ethan Griffiths (@ethangriffy) October 23, 2019

One resident reported their house had moved in the shake – while another likened the quake to a truck having hit their building.

GeoNet initially reported the quake being magnitude 3.3 but it was quickly revised.