Hundreds of aftershocks since 6.2 New Zealand earthquake

Around 1,300 aftershocks have shaken central New Zealand in the week since a 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck near the small rural town of Eketahuna, on the lower east of the North Island, government scientists said Monday. However, the possibility of another tremor of similar magnitude within 30 days of the Jan. 20 quake was now about 5 percent or " very unlikely," said a statement from the government's GeoNet monitoring service. The strongest aftershocks since the quake were eight tremors of magnitude 4 to 4.9, followed by 75 others measuring 3 to 3.9 and 1, 205 measuring below 3. GeoNet experts said Tuesday that the quake could be followed by up to 33 aftershocks of magnitude 4 to 4.9 in the following week, and up to five aftershocks of magnitude 5 to 5.9. The quake, which was centered 15 km east of Eketuna at a depth of 33 km, caused no injuries when it struck just before 4 p.m. last week, but it left rockslides, cracked roads, damaged homes and businesses and cut power to thousands of households in the lower North Island.