Major quake strikes off New Zealand

A large earthquake struck off New Zealand's South Island on Wednesday evening, rattling residents and had a tsunami warning that was later canceled.

The 7.8-strength Quake generated a small 6-inch tsunami in Jackson Bay on the west coast of South Island, and a 2-inch tsunami reported in Tasman north of the epicenter, according to U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

Twenty minutes after the tremors, a 5.8-strength after the shock hit the same region, according to U.S. Geological Survey, which measures earthquakes around the world.

The original Quake hit around 8:22 local time (9:22 am UTC / 5:22 ET) and the epicenter was 150 kilometers (95 miles) west-northwest of Invercargill, according to USGS. It is a sparsely populated area of New Zealand.

The after shocks hit in roughly the same area, according to USGS.

A tsunami warning was issued for New Zealand as a precaution shortly after the first Quake, but was canceled about an hour and a half later.

The warning center said the tsunamis it generated "may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicenter.

But it is added to the local authorities can assume the threat is gone "for these areas when no major waves are observed for two hours after the estimated time of arrival or damaging waves have not occurred for at least two hours."

So far, there have been no reports of major damage.

The temblor shook buildings in Queenstown - situated about 110 miles northwest of the epicenter - and frightened residents who drove the streets, according to the New Zealand Herald.

The earthquake that was felt throughout the South Island, downed power and telephone lines, the newspaper reported.

"It was not very violent, more of a rolling feel," Simon Darby, reside in the inner city Wanaka, told the Herald. But it had an effect on it - I drove straight into the carpark. "