Recent Christchurch earthquakes within ‘expected behaviour’

GeoNet

17 June 2024

Map showing approximately 90 earthquakes recorded

This weekend's earthquakes were within the expected behavior for the 2010 Canterbury aftershock sequence.

In the past week, GeoNet has recorded 10 earthquakes south-west of Christchurch, between magnitude 1.2 and 3.5. The largest event occurred at 5:45 PM on Saturday 15 June and we received more than 4,000 felt reports.

The M3.5 event was shallow at 4km deep, which explains why it was felt by many in the area surrounding the earthquake epicentre.

Seismicity in the Canterbury region is still at higher levels than before 2010, this includes the earthquakes GeoNet is recording around Christchurch. However, this is within the expected behavior for the 2010 Canterbury aftershock sequence, even after more than a decade since the 2010-2011 earthquakes.

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