From the news (sky TV news) it seems it was the central business district, no serious injuries reported to date.
It appears the quake was centered about 30km (about 18.5 miles) outside of Christchurch. There have been regular aftershocks since the quake struck early this morning.
No casualties as of yet, and no serious injury reported either (there are conflicting reports about whether one person has been hit by a falling chimney, but nothing confirmed as of yet). However, it's only been 5 hours since the quake, and initial assessment is still taking place, so there could still be instances of people trapped in buildings, etc.
For the magnitude of the quake, the damage is actually on the lower end of the scale (from the pictures i've seen and the news coverage i've watched), which is testament to good building regulations and recognition of being in an earthquake zone. Interestingly, the fault from which this quake appears to have originated is not a major fault, and could even be classified as a
blind fault.
There are concerns that there may be damage to the base infrastructure (water, sewage) and while cell towers are still working, they're on backup batteries. Electricity is down in much of the city and surrounding area. It will several days to a couple weeks to properly assess and repair any damage.
Civil defense and the government have worked quickly with local authorities, which is good news. People are being urged not to use any tap water, or flush toilets because of the suspected infrastructure damage, and only use their cell phones when absolutely necessary. Water distribution points will be set up in the city later on today. People have been asked to stay inside wherever possible due to the unstable nature of the ground, as well as the continued aftershocks being experienced.
There have been a few isolated reports of looting, but the police say they've taken care of those and have a large ground force in action.
On a personal note, while i live in Auckland, i have several friends who live in Christchurch or just outside. I've heard from one set that they're okay, which is great. I have yet to hear from the others, but i'm assuming best-case scenarios.
