A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook the top of the South Island and bottom of the North Island this afternoon. 

GeoNet have reported a magnitude 5.6 earthquake hit 35 km south-west of Blenheim just after 4pm. 

GeoNet say the earthquake was 32 km deep. 

People on social media reportedly felt it across the upper South Island and lower North Island including Wellington and Nelson, Palmerston North. 

While it was centred near Blenheim it was felt widely in Wellington and in Nelson, where it was described by some as a low, rolling rumble which made household items sway. 

"Yikes," said one woman who felt the quake in Nelson.