New Zealand’s South Island has been woken by a 6.4 magnitude earthquake, the strongest since the deadly Christchurch earthquake in 2011.

The earthquake struck 35km north of the ski town of Methven at 6.48am local time on Tuesday morning, but there are yet to be any reports of damage.

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It has been recorded as “severe” by New Zealand’s GeoNet advisory service.

The quake was felt by more than 2500 people, and police are on their way to the scene.

The epicentre was 100km west of Christchurch city, where 185 people were killed by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake in 2011.

According to GeoNet, 13 aftershocks struck within an hour, four of them measuring higher than a magnitude 4.

The quake was close to the city of Christchurch. Photo: GeoNet