The quake hit hard enough to jolt people from sleep with a loud rumble followed by violent shaking. One resident described the experience as "like a bomb the floor in my shed jumped upwards then the shaking started," while another said it was the "worst I ever felt in my 78 years." Multiple people reported household items falling or breaking during the tremor, with social media users describing the shaking as "intense" and "scariest" they had experienced.
The early-morning jolt affected a wide area across the North Island, felt as far north as Waihi and the North Shore. GeoNet classified the shaking as strong and recorded reports from over 7,300 people, with about 3,000 reporting moderate shaking. The earthquake-monitoring service reminded residents that dropping, covering, and holding during a quake is the correct action to take, and that those in bed should cover their heads.
Earth Sciences seismic duty officer Elisabetta D'Anastasio told media there is no clear link between the earthquake and volcanic activity at Mount Taranaki, despite the region being an active area where the volcano coexists with known active faults. Earthquakes in the area can be either tectonic, related to known faults, or volcano-tectonic in origin.