[ad_1]
People are evacuating coastal towns in the Eastern Bay of Plenty and the East Cape after three major earthquakes triggered a tsunami watch.
There were three earthquakes near the Kermadec Islands on Friday morning, including a magnitude 8.1, 7.1 and 7.4 earthquake.
Residents of Matatā a Tolaga Bay have been told to move immediately to high ground.
SUPPLIED
People on the Hillcrest lookout after evacuating Whakatāne.
In Whakatāne, the traffic began to back up in the early hours of the morning as people started heading towards the hills.
READ MORE:
* Cluster of earthquakes: what you need to know
* Tsunami warning: the threat to New Zealand passes after the magnitude 7.7 earthquake in New Caledonia
* The land of magic custard squares and legendary mince pies.
At the Whakatāne Coast Guard offices, which are located at the mouth of the Whakatane River, a man named Craig answered the phone around 9.15am, but was unwilling to speak for long.
“I’m leaving right now. The whole town is evacuating. We are sensible here.”
Craig didn’t even have time to give his last name.
“That does not matter friend. I walk out the door. “
His sense of urgency was not shared by everyone in the municipality. In the coast guard’s port chamber, at the same time, some people could be seen casually wandering along the shoreline.
Whakatāne resident Jan Anderson and her husband Jim were in their car trying to get out of town and onto higher ground around 9.45am, but they weren’t getting very far very fast.
“We are moving very, very, very slowly. I would say that the entire municipality is paralyzed.
“The children of all the schools are marching down the path that passes by us.
SUPPLIED
The lookout at Hillcrest where residents are gathering after evacuating Whakatāne.
“There are thousands going up the hill. We may not be able to get there and have to go to Taneatua instead.”
The Apanui school in Whakatāne told parents on social media that they had evacuated the school to Mokorua Gorge and that “the traffic was crazy.”
They told residents that they were all accounted for.
“Your children are safe, make sure you are.”
Hope resident Emma Tucker said she evacuated with her dog to Hope Hill.
“After receiving the warning, it took about 12 minutes to get to safety.
“All the cars are at the evacuation point. Cars are recovering pretty fast.
“Luckily there’s a lot of room on Hope Hill.”
1 NEWS
A large earthquake of magnitude 8.0 has triggered a tsunami warning in some coastal areas of New Zealand.
At 10.05am while talking to her, she said they were “feeling a good earthquake right now.”
The atmosphere on the hill was respectful and caring, he said.
“Everyone is sitting in their cars or talking to each other outside of their cars.”
He said police would stop by from time to time and someone from New Zealand Fire & Emergency was there to make sure people parked properly.
The Pohutukawa preschool in Whakatāne told parents to pick up their children as soon as possible as they were evacuating and heading towards Taneatua on Stanley Rd.
In social media photos, police at the Commerce St roundabout could be seen directing people inland toward Taneatua, while hundreds more in the community were seen climbing Ōhope hill.
Farmers were also doing their best to move their livestock to higher ground.
SUPPLIED
Whitianga residents living in the purple shaded areas are asked to be prepared to evacuate.
A local dairy farmer, who did not want to be identified, rushed to his lifestyle block in Ōtākiri, 12 km from Matatā, early this morning after the alert arrived.
“I’m doing what I can, as fast as I can, but I need to leave soon,” he said. Things
The Ohope School also evacuated all of its students to the top of a hill, posting on social media to let parents know their children were safe.
While the tsunami warning does not apply to Coromandel, some Whitianga residents living in coastal areas are being asked to prepare to move to higher ground or inland if a call is made.
The Thames-Coromandel District Council publishes a map showing areas where people are advised to have a duffel bag ready and wait for the official word.
