CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand: A powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake killed two people and caused massive infrastructure damage in New Zealand on Monday, but officials said they were optimistic the death toll would not rise. But Civil Defense Minister Gerry Brownlee said 12 hours after the quake that a clearer picture of the damage was emerging. “I think had there been serious injury or suspected further loss of life than we would have heard about it by now,” he told Radio New Zealand. Hundreds of aftershocks, some stronger than 6.0, continued to rattle the country in the hours after the main quake. Shattered glass littered inner city streets, with rail and bus services cancelled as officials told people not to commute to work.

Source: Manila Times November 14, 2016 03:06 UTC