November 13, 2016 Earthquake: Amberley, New Zealand

One person killed at Kaikoura and one person died from a heart attack at Mount Lyford. The city of Kaikoura was cut off by road due to landslides, road subsidence and damage to bridges and other infrastructure. Widespread damage to buildings and docks and power outages occurred in Wellington. Preliminary studies by GNS Science, New Zealand, indicate that surface faulting was observed on at least 12 faults, with a maximum uplift of about 10 m and about 110 km of coastal uplift was observed in Marlborough and northern Canterbury. Felt (VIII) at Amberley, (VII) at Blenheim and (VI) at Brightwater, Carterton, Kapiti, Lower Hutt, Lyttelton, Nelson, Porirua, Rangiora, Richmond, Wanganui and Wellington. Felt in most of New Zealand, from Northland and Gisborne to Southland. Waikuku, Canterbury, New Zealand - CDI: 9; Culverden, Canterbury, New Zealand - CDI: 8; Te Puru-Thornton Bay, Waikato, New Zealand - CDI: 8; Amberley, Canterbury, New Zealand - CDI: 8; Oxford, Canterbury, New Zealand - CDI: 8

Tectonic Summary

The November 13, 2016 M 7.8 earthquake in North Canterbury, New Zealand, occurred as the result of shallow oblique-reverse faulting on or near the boundary between the Pacific and Australia plates in South Island, New Zealand. At the location of this earthquake, the Pacific plate moves to the west-southwest with respect to the Australia plate at a rate of approximately 40 mm/yr. The epicenter of the earthquake is about 30-45 km south-southeast of the main surface expression of the plate boundary in the region-the Hope Fault, part of the Marlborough Fault system that connects a subduction zone to the primary plate boundary in the South Island-the Alpine Fault. The plate boundary in the region of the earthquake is complex, involving a transition from subduction along the Hikurangi Trough to the east of the North Island, to transform faulting through the South Island. The size, depth (~25 km) and faulting orientation of the November 13 event suggest a larger, subduction-related structure, though the subduction zone interface is not thought to extend this far to the south of the Alpine fault system. The complexity of the event, involving a main energy release delayed by about 40 s, combined with an early aftershock distribution extending about 150 km to the north-northeast of the mainshock, suggests the potential for triggered slip on the Pacific:Australia subduction zone interface.

The November 13th M 7.8 earthquake is the largest event in the region since an M 7.3 earthquake 100 km to the northwest in June 1929.

(above from ref#1053)

Prime Minister confirmed two fatalities on Monday, one in Kaikoura and one in Mt Lyford. Almost 5000 homes in Wellington were left without power after the first quake. (ref #11636)

damage in the area was "catastrophic". "There have been 100,000 landslides, over 50 covering State Highway 1," the main road which runs the length of the country. But the company said damage to residential housing was "not too bad". (ref #11664)

The effects were widespread over an area of 7,000 km2 with estimates that there has been between 80,000 to 100,000 landslides triggered by the earthquake and subsequent aftershocks. Along the coastline damage became apparent south from Cape Campbell, becoming more intense south of the Clarence River, with several large landslides disrupting both SH1 and SIMT railway. South of Kaikoura, on the steep slopes near Twin Tunnels, damage was similar to areas north of Kaikoura, again covering and or disrupting both SH1 and SIMT. A satellite image covers part of the area north of Kaikoura and has identified 12 landslide dams. (ref #11665)

More than 50 buildings in central Wellington damaged after the initial quake. (ref #11668)

3.9 billion USD total damages (reference #1250)

2.37 billion USD economic loss (reference #13727)