New Zealand Evacuates Quake-Hit Town Kaikoura

New Zealand rescue workers are evacuating scores of tourists and residents from the town hardest hit by a series of powerful earthquakes.

Four air force helicopters are now airlifting people out of Kaikoura on the South Island after battling strong winds and heavy rain earlier.

The town, northeast of Christchurch, has been cut off by quake-triggered landslides.

Hundreds of aftershocks have rocked the area as well.

The capital Wellington on the North Island continues to see severe weather on Tuesday with heavy rain and flooding.

Two people were killed in the 7.5 magnitude earthquake that struck the South Island early on Monday.

Meanwhile three cows that were filmed stranded on a tiny island have reportedly been rescued by a farmer.

Air Commander Darryn Webb, the acting commander of New Zealand joint forces, told TVNZ that they are airlifting approximately 200 people out of Kaikoura on Tuesday.

There are an estimated 1,200 tourists at the popular whale-watching spot, which has a population of about 2,000.

Two ships and other aircraft are assisting with the evacuations as well, said the New Zealand Defence Force. Prime Minister John Key said the top priority was to provide desperately-needed supplies to Kaikoura.

Police have warned that water and electricity supplies are running out, and hundreds remain in evacuation shelters and community centres, reports the BBC.

At least 1,000 are housed in the local marae, or Maori meeting place, and had crayfish – the town’s specialty – for breakfast on Tuesday, after local fisheries’ tanks failed with the electricity shortage, reported Reuters.

Local divers and fishermen are also reportedly working to relocate tens of thousands of paua – a type of mollusc – and crayfish back to the sea after the seabed rose out of the water by around 2m (6.6 ft).

Transport Minister Simon Bridges told reporters on Tuesday that road and rail access to Kaikoura will take “several months”.

Officials who have begun assessing the aftermath say billions of dollars of damage was caused, with major road and rail links severed.

GeoNet, a government-funded project monitoring earthquakes, said that aftershocks would continue over the next few months.