Some felt the quake from as far as Christchurch, almost 500 kilometres away, The NZ Herald reported.
`It started quite subtle, then got really intense. My mum jumped up and I quickly followed her outside,` resident Schariona Parker-Poto said from her Wellington home.
The intensity and depth of the quake was described as `severe` after it hit, 35 kilometres northeast of Seddon, according to GeoNet.
Some residents reported feeling the ground shake for 15 seconds.
Residents in Blenheim, French Pass, Paraparaumu, Picton, Seddon and Wellington all felt the earthquake.
Locals have been asked to remain indoors during the quake and to `drop, cover and hold` during each tremble.
Aftershocks are expected to hit the Seddon region on Thursday.
Last month, two major earthquakes measuring 6.3 and 7.8 struck Cheviot, located between Christchurch and Kaikoura.
More than 1000 tourists and residents were evacuated from the small seaside town of Kaikoura by a fleet of helicopters and a naval vessel after the massive quake.
The 7.8 earthquake tore apart the seabed, homes, roadways and claimed the lives of two people.
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