It was a rumbly evening for Taupō residents on Thursday into Friday as more than 50 small and shallow earthquakes were recorded just north of the town.
GNS Science said most of them occurred between around 6pm yesterday and 3am today. The largest was a 2.8 magnitude shake which struck at 10.51pm at a depth of 4km.
Most occurred before 11pm, but there was another burst around 3am.
Duty volcanologist Ery Hughes said swarms of earthquakes are common in geothermal areas.
“Although the GeoNet website and app report the earthquakes as “unnoticeable” or “weak” shaking, this does not account for how shallow the earthquakes are or how close people live to them – our team based in Taupō have definitely been feeling them.”
The rate of earthquakes was higher than normally observed, she said.
“We continue to monitor the activity. We’ll provide updates if activity changes or increases.”
Civil Defence Taupō posted on its social media to advise residents on what to do if an earthquake strikes while they are in bed.
“Stay, cover and hold: Stay in bed and pull the sheets and blankets over you. Cover your head and neck with your pillow. Hold on until the shaking stops.”
Residents also commented on the post with one saying there was an “unpleasant boom” accompanying the jolts.
“Definitely a rattly old night,” said another.
