WELLINGTON, New Zealand — A powerful earthquake struck New Zealand near the city of Christchurch early Monday, generating a tsunami, with the first waves hitting the South Island, officials said.

The strong jolts caused some damage to buildings over 200 kilometers (120 miles) away in the capital, Wellington.

New Zealand emergency services warned people near the coast of the South Island to move to higher ground following the magnitude-7.8 quake.

In Wellington, 214 kilometers (132 miles) north of the quake’s epicenter, power was knocked out in some places, and some windows smashed and some chimneys collapsed.(nydailynews.com)…[+]