Wellington, Feb 28 NZPA - An official tsunami warning has been issued for the entire east coast of New Zealand after a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile overnight, with a GNS scientist hopeful the wall of water will not cause severe damage.

Ken Gledhill of GNS Science said New Zealand was not in the main beam of the tsunami, which was headed for Japan.

It was still expected to hit this country, and a lack of recorders across the Pacific Ocean from Chile meant it was hard to predict how big the tsunami would be.

Four major waves had hit French Polynesia, Tahiti had a water level rise of up to two metres, with little damage, and the water was being sucked out and returning at a higher level the Chatham Islands, though the full force had yet to arrive.

Dr Gledhill said "we can say it's unlikely to be very destructive". The tsunami would be mainly a marine threat, he told TVNZ. Some pockets could be worse than others.

The Chatham Islands is the first part of the country expected to feel the effects of the predicted tsunami, with a wave of between one and three metres due between 7am and 7.30am. Residents have been evacuated to the local marae.

It is then expected to reach the east coast of the mainland, reaching Gisborne and East Cape about 8.30am, Wellington by 9am, Canterbury 9.30am, and Auckland 11am.

The Kaikoura District Council was basing its planning on the possibility of a one metre wave. The Peninsula Road was closed and staff are evacuating freedom campers from along the beach areas.

Staff are on standby to close SH1 north from Cheviot if required in coordination with police and the Marlborough District Council, Canterbury Civil Defence said.

Hurunui District Council Volunteers in coastal communities have been informing residents to stay away the beach.

Waimakariri District Council volunteers in coastal communities have been advising residents to stay off the beach and would focus their efforts on contacting people fishing at the Waimakariri River mouth.

Christchurch City Council staff were preparing for potential evacuation of low lying areas of Banks Peninsula from Teddington, south of Lyttelton to Akaroa. Shipping movements in Lyttelton port cancelled for the day.

Selwyn District Council Rakaia fishing competition organisers were informed at 0530 of the possible tsunami. There are approximately 700 competitors over the length of river and Ellesmere Search and Rescue are currently advising people to move from the river mouth.

Ashburton District Council coastal settlements have been advised of the possible tsunami. Rakaia search and rescue is currently at river mouth advising people to move inland and staff are working to approximately 1km upstream of mouth.

Timaru District Council Staff have been in contact with PrimePort and emergency contacts at coastal hut communities have advised of the threat.

Waimate District Council roading staff to put signs up on road to Waihao Box and are coordinating with the Waitaki District Council regarding any impact on the Waitaki River mouth.

In Auckland and the Bay of Plenty, Civil Defence have not recommended evacuation, but have warned people to keep away from all water based activities and not to go sightseeing on the coast.

In Hawke's Bay, about 80 people have fled from their homes in coastal settlements of Te Awanga and Haumoana, which emergency services expect to be hardest hit if a tsunami should eventuate today.

The residents "self-evacuated" to Haumoana school, where Hastings District Council has sent civil defence staff to assist.

Council spokeswoman Erin Harford said other residents were welcome to go to the school if they wished.

At Waimarama, impatient boat owners and fishermen eager to get started on a fishing competition today are being kept away from the boat launching ramp and warned to stay away from the beach.

Regional civil defence spokesman Drew Broadley said staff had been on duty since shortly after 2am today, and were keeping a close watch to see what happened at the Chatham Islands.

The predicted wave height of one metre posed no threat to Napier residents, so no general alert had been issued to them.

Stallholders at the Napier Sunday morning market were setting up on the Pacific foreshore.

The organiser of the market, which sells vegetables and knicknacks, said she intended to go ahead with the market, and evacuate if the tsunami hit the Chatham Islands.

Stallholders were unaware of the Civil Defence warnings, they told Radio New Zealand.

However, police have closed off access to boat ramps, and Hawke's Bay residents are being warned to stay away from rivers, estuaries and beaches.

The Port of Napier has towed three vessels out to be moored in at least 30m of water until the alert has passed. A cruise ship due in the port today has been moored off the Hawke's Bay coast.

The Wellington Emergency Management Office said it was closely monitoring what was happening in the Chatham Islands as it would be give some measure of what was coming for the rest of New Zealand.

Acting national controller of Civil Defence Alan Walker said the tsunami had the potential to impact on New Zealand, with the Chatham Islands and Banks Peninsula the two areas of greatest concern.

Okains Bay camping ground and other residents on Banks Peninsula had been evacuated, the interisland ferries would be diverted so they did not use the narrow Tory Channel entrance to the Marlborough Sounds.

Trains along the low-lying Christchurch-Picton and Wellington-Petone lines would be stopped if the threat loomed, and the lines would not reopen until it had passed.

Mr Walker said he had been briefed by Civil Defence leaders around the country and that "they are all prepared and activated".

"They are waiting now for information to come through and we are waiting to receive that information from GNS (Science)," he told Radio New Zealand.

"They are all ready to go with the evacuation of low-lying areas because this would appear at this stage to be a marine threat which means that you keep off the beaches, stay out of the water, and don't go sightseeing."

And while residents of Midway and Waikanae beachs near Gisborne were being evacuated, residents of a camping ground on the foreshore in the eastern Bay of Plenty, have been told they can return.

Police had told the campers to evacuate about 5.30am, Alex Knowles of the Ohope Beach Top 10 Holiday Park, near Whakatane.

"So we went around and evacuated the whole park. Around 7am they downgraded it."

The campers had not yet returned, he told NZPA.

"We told them all to go up the hill, so by the time we got the downgrade, they'd all gone."

Aucklander Maryann Absolum said her sister on the Chathams had been moved.

"My sister -the one down The Chathams - has been in contact with my sister in Wellington since 2 o'clock this morning. I think everybody's up and alerted," she said.

"They've been up at the council phoning every household and the warning sirens have gone so everyone should have moved to higher ground. I think 5am the sirens went and they were on the move to higher ground. I do know my family has moved to higher ground."

In the Chathams, guests at the Waitangi Hotel were alerted at 3.30am and moved the a nearby marae.

Despite the tsunami warning many New Zealanders were going about their usual Sunday morning activities, blissfully unaware of the danger.

On Auckland's North Shore people spoken to by NZPA were unaware of the warning, which was sparked by an 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile last night.

Several boaties who were about to head out were alarmed at the prospect of a metre-high wave hitting the east coast and were reconsidering their day on the water.

At Milford Beach two women who were about to set off on a walk along the coast to Takapuna were apparently unperturbed about the warning and did not change their plans.

"I've got my flippers," said one of the women.

The tide in Auckland was very high shortly after daybreak and many houses on beaches and in the east coast bays were likely to feel the impact of a metre-high wave if it hits Auckland.

However it appears the warning had not reached many people and there were still boats being launched.

On a bay north of Milford a man was fishing off a rocky outcrop.

At Whitianga a resident told NZPA that a warning siren had gone off, but residents didn't know what it was, so stayed put.

A mass nude photo shoot planned for Wellington's Breaker Bay beach this morning was cancelled as a result of the tsunami warning in effect.

Wellington City Council emergency management staff contacted the organiser of the event, scheduled for 8am today, and it was agreed the event be postponed.