Last weekend New Zealand was rocked by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. The strike was so strong that the seabed was lifted two metres and pushed right through the sand.
These shocking pictures were taken on the coastline of Kaikoura on the South Island. And, while the pictures may look cool, it's bad news for the sea life on the bed, as it won't survive outside of water.
Kiwi resident Anna Redmond shared the photos on her Facebook page and they quickly went viral.
Credit: Facebook/Anna Redmond
Credit: Facebook/Anna Redmond
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The quakes, which resulted in two deaths, and tsunami warnings that followed led to thousands of residents who lived on the coast being told to move inland or to high ground.
Speaking to Stuff, Dr Joshu Mountjoy, a marine geologist from the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, said: "Some faults go side-to-side while others move vertically, like in this case, where the fault has pushed the land up into the air, and it appears to be by about a metre."
Despite being fairly used to earthquakes, this is a rare occurrence and many experts are saying this is the first time they've ever seen anything like this.
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Featured image credit: Facebook/Anna Redmond
Featured Image Credit:Topics: New Zealand, Earthquake