lazypadawan | OT: Big Destructive Quake in New Zealand

A 6.3 struck near Christchurch, NZ just a couple of hours ago. This one is said to be much more destructive than the 7.1 that hit New Zealand in September, even though it's lower on the Richter scale and is likely an aftershock. Why? It was pretty shallow (2.5 miles), the shaking was more violent, it lasted a minute (by comparison, the 7.2 we got here a year ago lasted about 10 seconds), and it hit right in an urban area. Buildings are said to be down and sadly, people have been killed.

There was a cluster of aftershocks in SoCal/Baja on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Didn't feel any of them. There seems to be a whole lot of seismic activity going on again, with recent aftershocks in Chile, a cluster of mini quakes in Arkansas, etc..

Hope my Kiwi peeps are safe!