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An earthquake of magnitude 7.8 has struck near Christchurch, New Zealand, triggering a tsunami with 2.5m high waves.

People living along the coast have been warned to 'move to higher ground' - with the first waves already hitting the north east coast of South Island.

One-metre high waves are now hitting Christchurch in a barrage predicted to last hours.

The quake, which lasted for two minutes, struck in darkness in the early hours of Monday morning in Christchurch which was reduced to rubble by an earthquake just five years ago.

The tsunami threat is for the east coast of all New Zealand including Christchurch, Wellington and the Chatham islands - people across the entire country have been told to stay off beaches.

Follow our live tsunami warning blog for the latest updates

(Image: @dickbicknell)

(Image: AFP / Getty)

Firefighters are continuing to scour the rubble at a home in Kaikoura for a missing person after one person was found alive.

A fire brigade source said there had been other reports of casualties but the full extent was not yet known.

Some areas along South Island’s east coast could be hit with waves as high as 16.4ft, says New Zealand’s Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management.

It has tweeted a photo of a map that shows the areas that are expected to be affected by a tsunami.

It said: “Highest waves are expected between Marlborough and Banks Peninsula. There is a threat for all NZ coast. Stay off beaches.”

(Image: Getty Images AsiaPac)

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Also known as a seismic sea waves, tsunamis are a series of waves caused by the displacement of a huge volume of water - in this case, the earthquake

So far, the first waves have hit smaller islands off the east coast of New Zealand but they are expected to hammer the country's larger islands over the next several hours.

St John Ambulance says it is starting to receive reports of injuries from the earthquake zone, including Culverden and Kaikoura, Radio New Zealand reports.

The nature of the injuries is not known.

The earthquake could be felt more than 1,100 miles away, with potential for damage well over 100 miles away.

Tiles have been reported falling off walls more than 130 miles away.

(Image: AFP / Getty) (Image: AFP / Getty)

St John Ambulance is sending a command unit, additional paramedics and rescue helicopters to the disaster zone in case they are needed.

It was originally recorded as 7.4 on the Richter scale but has since been upgraded to 7.8 by the US Geological Service.

In Wellington, warning sirens are sounding and people have been witnessed crying in the streets, while elsewhere there have been reports of roads cracking up after the quake.

Tsunami waves will not resemble normal sea waves because their wavelength is much longer and will initially look like a rapidly rising tide.

It is feared the waves will reach between 3m to 5m in height, with the potential widespread death and destruction.

Some communities are being warned that they do not have tsunami warning sirens.

People living in towns without sirens have been urged to speak to neighbours and friends, especially elderly and vulnerable people.

(Image: Tim Owen)

British chef Tim Owen, who is in Halswell, a satellite town of Christchurch, told Mirror Online: "We live about 25 minutes from the beach, it's not too far. The thought of a tsunami is always scary.

"I have some friends that live right on the beach so have contacted them."

(Image: @dickbicknell)

(Image: AFP / Getty)

The 29-year-old from Maidenhead, Berkshire, added: "The earthquake went on for like a minute or so, which is quite long. It felt like swaying and like a wave.

"We just got up from the couch and stood in the doorway. It does make you feel very anxious not knowing if it will get worse or when it may stop.

(Image: @kaiitlin)

The New Zealand Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency management tweeted: "A tsunami has been generated, the first wave has arrived in the North Eastern Coast of the South Island."

Kevin Rankin, from Christchurch, tweeted his horror as tsunami sirens go off along the coast and locals desperately flee inland for their lives.

He wrote: "Tsunami siren going off and can hear all the cars heading towards the hills."

The ministry added: "If you are in a low lying area on the East Coast of the North, South or Chatham Islands move immediately to higher ground."

(Image: EPA)

They said: "People on the East Coast should move to higher ground - rest of NZ stay off beaches and away from the water."

A later tweet warned: "Further waves should be expected and may be larger and more dangerous."

Earlier they wrote: "People near the coast in the south island should move to high ground or inland."

Its Wellington Region office issued maps showing colour-coded tsunami evacuation zones for coastal areas.

(Image: Nick Kingstone)

Today's earthquake measured more powerfully on the Richter scale than 2011's 6.3 quake.

Power lines and phone lines are said to be down, including emergency lines to police, fire and ambulance services.

Others reported that the emergency number 111 was back up and running.

Anthropology student Heather McMillan said her home shook “like jelly” when the earthquake struck as she was getting ready for bed, and she feared it was going to collapse.

(Image: Getty Images AsiaPac)

The 20-year-old told Mirror Online: “When it started it was really big so I thought it was going to be short but it kept going for a good few minutes and felt like the second floor was going to fall down.

“Very quickly you realise it's an earthquake because I’ve felt one before. “But this was a different level. I honestly thought it was going to last for 20 minutes or longer.

“I live in the second storey of a flat and it was like a rolling feeling from the house. The aftershocks have felt like we're a ship at sea.

”She said the tremor lasted around five minutes but it felt like forever".

She added: “I think it's one of those moments when you start thinking whether this is it? Like the big earthquake that's going to put Christchurch back into the place it was five years ago?”

Heather said her flat did not suffer any damage, but her parents in Wellington were without power and had some belongings damaged as the earthquake shook their home.

Patsy Knight told Mirror Online that aftershocks were still continuing 20 minutes after the quake.

She said: "We're in Wellington and absolutely terrifying. Smashed glass everywhere, but thankfully all good. Not much sleep happening though, kids with us. Aftershocks continuously happening!"

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The earthquake was felt as far away as Auckland, Wellington, Nelson and Hamilton.

In Hamilton, Wayne Timmo woke to the kitchen blinds banging against the window and said the quake felt like a "long slow, rolling or almost rotating motion".

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He told Stuff.co.NZ: "The water in the neighbour's swimming pool was left sloshing around for about a minute and people woken by the quake came out onto the street to talk about it.

"The cat has disappeared and the neighbours dog is upset."

In Nelson, resident Jo Davis grabbed her children and sheltered in a doorway as the quake seemed to "go on forever".

She said it had a much longer, more rolling motion than a 2010 Canterbury quake she experienced.

Davis said she was surprised there appeared to be no damage to the house.

"It really shook for a long time."

Others took to social media to show pictures and videos of their devastated homes.

Alysa Jane tweeted: "6.something magnitude earthquake did it's damage I'm on the 7th floor! I'm rekt!"

Kavithya wrote: "That was a huge earthquake. Got evacuated out of our apartment building. Hope everyone affected by it are safe!"

Cynthia Drescher, from Christchurch, said the earthquake lasted for three to four minutes.

She said she was evacuated to a building rebuilt after it was destroyed in the 2011 quake.

Cynthia described aftershocks she felt as "freaky".

Well-wishers from around the world sent their best wishes to the stricken country which has been devastated by earthquakes over the years.

Hugh Sintes told Mirror Online he and his wife Emma were about to retire for the night when their home began to shake.

He said: “The earthquake was intense, the whole house was moving a considerable amount - doors, lights were swaying.

“We have experienced many quakes in the South Island, none have ever lasted as long as this one did.

“Initially I was not too concerned, then because of the duration we had concern that the quake would become stronger and it did.

“After I guess a minute the quake reached its peak.”

Hugh said his home has a small amount of cosmetic damage, including cracks, but he hasn’t had a chance to inspect the exterior because the quake struck at night.

Arnoud Beckers, from Holland, wrote: "Hope everybody is safe in the beautiful city of Christchurch. Again hit by a huge quake."

Islanders could face aftershocks which often follow the main quake.

They can cause further building damage and falling debris.

A Christchurch Police spokeswoman told Stuff.co.NZ they hadn't received any calls about damage.

"Just be careful on the roads in case there's damage," she said.

St John Ambulance says they have no reports of injuries from the quake.

"We are monitoring the situation but at this stage we have not activated our emergency operations centre (EOC)", they said.

"We encourage everyone to check on their neighbours, family and friends, especially those who live alone or are frail."

"It is also important to have your emergency kit, torch and other emergency supplies ready."