CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand A sharp series of about 20 aftershocks rattled New Zealands earthquake-hit city of Christchurch overnight, and earthquake experts warned Tuesday that another powerful tremblor might hammer the region in coming days.
The weekends powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake smashed buildings and homes, wrecked roads and disrupted the central city, though nobody was killed and only two people were seriously injured.
The city center remained cordoned off by troops Tuesday, with only building owners and workers allowed in to begin clearing up the mess � with much of the center taking on the mantle of a ghost town.
More than 100 aftershocks, ranging from magnitude 3.2 to 5.4, have rocked the region since Saturdays major quake.
Overnight, about 20 shocks including two of magnitude 5.4 rattled the city, and quake experts said aftershocks likely will continue for several weeks � and the worst of them may be yet to come.
"It is still possible that well have a magnitude-6 in the next week, and people ought to be aware of that, particularly if they are around structures which are already damaged," said Ken Gledhill, a monitor at the geological agency GNS Science. "For a shallow earthquake like this, they will go on for weeks."
Prime Minister John Key called off a planned nine-day trip to Britain and France, citing what he called the quake zones continuing "instability."
Key was to have met with British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and with his wife, Bronagh, to have spent a weekend with Britains Queen Elizabeth II at her Scottish castle, Balmoral.
On Monday, Key warned that New Zealands economic recovery will suffer a setback from the damage wrought by the powerful quake.
"There will be considerable disruption to the regional and national economy in the short term," but activity should pick up as reconstruction gains momentum, he said. The government plans to pay at least 90 percent of the hundreds of millions of dollars needed to rebuild the citys water, waste water and road infrastructure, Key said.
The countrys economy has now recorded two quarters of minor growth after struggling to escape 18 months of recession.
The quake struck at 4:35 a.m. Saturday near the South Island city of 400,000 people, ripping open a new fault line in the earths surface, destroying hundreds of buildings and cutting power to the region.
Key, who toured the citys damaged areas over the weekend, said 430 houses and another 70 buildings, many of them older structures, were already earmarked for demolition because of damage caused by the quake. Around 100,000 of the regions 160,000 homes had sustained some damage, he said.
"I was awe-struck by the power of the earthquake and the damage it has caused in the city," he told reporters. "It was miraculous that nobody was killed."
New Zealand sits above an area where two tectonic plates collide. The country records more than 14,000 earthquakes a year � but only about 150 are felt by residents. Fewer than 10 a year do any damage.
New Zealands last major earthquake registered magnitude 7.8 and hit South Islands Fiordland region on July 16, 2009, moving the southern tip of the country 12 inches 30 centimeters closer to Australia.
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Associated Press Writer Ray Lilley in Wellington contributed to this report.
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