If a large earthquake hits near Wellington, a tsunami could reach the central city within just 10 minutes, recent modelling shows.

This makes it all the more important for locals to know their fastest route to safety. People have a general impression that some official will tell them what to do but it's unlikely to arrive in time. Networks could be down also, which means you won't have cell coverage. Therefore, if you feel a long strong earthquake, you need to have an emergency route sorted.

SOLUTION 

You can store, on your phone, maps for your area by simply taking a screen shot. That way if there is no network, you can then just pull up your screenshots from your phones photo library.

Also, Lert is working on a system where we can get alerts to people when there is no cell coverage. Watch this space.

Many Kiwis know what to do in an earthquake, but mistakenly believed they would receive an official warning from the Government if they needed to move to higher ground.

But tsunami data from the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office (WREMO) showed the earliest a tsunami could reach the region was within just eight minutes of a big earthquake depending where the quake is centred.

During the Kermadec quake recently, it took a while for initial advice to arrive from official sources while they assessed the likelihood of a tsunami.

Lert Info  had initial alerts out within 10 minutes to expect unusual currents, and as new data came in we sent updates.

You can't rely on infrastructure being up either, as soon as it stops shaking.  You need to self evacuate immediately. Remember, there are no Tsunami sirens on Wellington beaches so store your areas map on your phone.

It's also a good idea to practice an evacuation from your location to a safe high point.

People are encouraged to walk, run or cycle to a safe zone if possible. Cars have, and always will cause traffic jams and make it difficult for less mobile people.

In 1855 A severe 8.2 earthquake  created a tsunami in the city that moved around the harbour like water in a fishbowl, with waves moving from "side to side", it showed that another large quake with a locally-sourced tsunami could cause a similar effect and have an "enduring" impact, as it likely wouldn't be just one wave.