M6.1 earthquake near Palmerston North, Manawatu-Wanganui

What happened

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 57 km N of Castlepoint, New Zealand on 30 Dec 1938, 02:20 UTC at a depth of 15 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was a shallow earthquake, which tends to be felt more strongly at the surface.

The nearest town in our records is Palmerston North, about 59 km away in Manawatu-Wanganui, New Zealand.