Sussex woman escapes New Zealand earthquake

A grandmother from Sussex has spoken of her narrow escape from the New Zealand earthquake.

Jean Griffin, of Horsham, was due to pick-up her grandson James from nursery, but as it was raining her son-in-law offered to give them a lift.

She said her usual route to the nursery would probably have seen her trapped under falling debris at the time the earthquake struck on 22 February.

Speaking on her return to the UK, Mrs Griffin said: "If he hadn't picked us up both James and I, who is four, would have been under a great pile of boulders."

More than 160 people died in the New Zealand earthquake, which had a magnitude of 6.3.