Earthquake preparation ensured Te Anau’s youngsters knew what to do when a 5.9 magnitude earthquake struck Milford Sound area yesterday.
Hundreds of Te Anau School pupils had to "drop, roll and cover" at 10.20am when the moderate quake struck 40km west of Milford Sound a depth of 5km.
They were some of thousands who felt the shudder throughout the South Island and into the lower North Island.
People in Wanaka, Queenstown and Central Otago also felt the rumble — as did some in Dunedin.
Deputy principal Mark Hunter said all pupils felt the shake, but there was no damage.
"Every class in the school felt it ... and every class followed their earthquake evacuation procedure. It went quite smoothly."
The school had an evacuation drill the week before so everyone knew what to do.
Fiordland College year 13 pupil Karen Andrews said she was listening to hip hop music when it suddenly "changed to rock ‘n roll".
Her classmate Chiara Zoppetti, on an exchange from Italy, had heard about New Zealand’s earthquakes, but it was the first time she had experienced one.
Emergency Southland manager and group controller Angus McKay said investigations into the earthquake indicated there was nothing to worry about.
"There’s no damage and no injuries reported."
"It’s just another reminder that we live in a shaky country," Mr McKay said.
Southern Discoveries Milford Sound operations manager Wolfgang Hainzl said the situation was common for the community.
"We felt it but was it was nothing unusual for us. Earthquakes are pretty regular here so we are not too frightened."
GeoNet seismologist Muriel Naguit said the area had had at least 13 earthquakes this year.
"That means is not really uncommon to have a significant magnitude event in the area and we can really expect earthquakes [there]. Some of them can be a significant shake that can be felt by a lot of people."
She said there were more than 3000 reports of people who felt the earthquake yesterday.
There had been at least 15 aftershocks recorded in the area, ranging from 1.6 to 3.5 in magnitude, she said.
"Every earthquake is unique. We have to bear in mind that New Zealand is a seismically active country, so we really expect a number of earthquakes to happen in our country from time to time."
