Hurricane-hit New Zealand jolted by 6.1 magnitude earthquake

Hurricane-hit New Zealand was struck by a 6.1 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday, centred near Wellington.

Quake monitoring agency GeoNet reported that the 6.1 'strong earthquake' had a depth of 48 km and was 50 km north-west of Paraparaumu.

Meanwhile, Cyclone Gabrielle weakened and moved away from New Zealand on Wednesday as the country started to assess the damage caused by significant flooding, landslides and high winds that left four people dead and displaced thousands from their homes.

Gabrielle, which reached New Zealand on Sunday before making its way down the east coast of the North Island, cut off entire towns, washed away farms, bridges and livestock, and inundated homes, stranding people on roof tops.

Police on Wednesday said four people had now been confirmed dead including a volunteer firefighter who responded to a call out and was caught in a landslide on Monday.