ANOTHER EARTHQUAKE

I have copied this from another blog which I feel tells it better than I could:

Back on September 4th, 2010, Canterbury,South Island, New Zealand was hit by a massive earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter Scale.  Many people were left homeless as a result, but we were all hugely lucky that no lives were lost, largely due to the time it struck - 4.35am

For the 5 months since, we have endured several thousand aftershocks, each an earthquake in their own right.  Alot of these have been large enough to cause further damage to properties all over the region, particularly the one that hit on Boxing Day 2010.

This week, it happened again.

On Tuesday 22nd February 2011, at lunchtime, Christchurch and Canterbury got hit by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake that absolutely and totally devastated our city centre.

Firstly, a small note which I wrote the other day, then some photos, then  a wee update at the bottom which I wrote this afternoon.

Really appreciate everyone's thoughts, wishes and prayers at this time.

Managed to get to a computer for the first time in a few days for a brief moment... we are right in the heart of the quake. Our house is trashed inside ... huge holes in the roof where the chimneys were yanked out and crashed down again causing major damage. Mike's brother has spent the day yesterday fixing it and we have a good cover now for the rain. We have no power or water and walking around through all my broken china and furniture everywhere. All of us are safe.The boys have moved elsewhere for a few days while we face the worse (cleaning etc, altho you can't clean due to no water!) . We moved last night alongside the house (which we rent anyway) into our caravan for now... till power and water come back on. The word is out it could be weeks, but we hope a lot less! Going to friends and family in our church for showers every couple of days. Devastation in the extreme in the city which is only 3 blocks from where we live. . Thanks for your care. We live in the Central Business District area which is by far the worse hurt and quite substantial numbers killed. We are alive and in good spirits!! There is a curfew where we live and between 6.30pm and 6.30 am we may not leave or enter. At all other times we can come and go with identification and proof of address. There is the army and a tank even to enforce this - with ominous looking handcuffs handy on the bar - which the young army chap says they have been already been using! Our Chinese student went back to China this morning and will come back in 3 weeks when hopefully University opens again!

Caroline and Michael

There is a tank, army chaps and police and handcuffs at the end of our street!   Due to the fact we um... almost never have tanks in our street... I include a couple!!

  

Stanmore Road shops... our Saturday night fish and chip has gone. Just a block from where we live. Someone told us a person was killed here by the falling veranda, but I cannot confirm that.

Paul and Marianne's place where they used to live!  Thought they might like to see it??

Not far from home - a typical and common sight :(

Some liquefaction photos - and these are mild compared with many!

Soil liquefaction describes a phenomenon whereby a soil substantially loses strength and stiffness in response to an applied stress, usuallyearthquake shaking or other rapid loading (force), causing it to behave like a liquid.

  

We know an old gentleman, Joe Thomas and this is his place. We called in to see if he was ok, but he was gone. I suppose someone is sheltering him. His driveway and all around his house was like a sewage pond.

A bit further on - a street with half buried vehicles!

A church near Mike's work - fortunately not used as a church any more!

Some piles of rubble.  Last week they were useful buildings....

Just this afternoon, Mike and Guy went and picked up the scooter Heath had purchased the day of the quake! So this is a bright spot!

And while we are on the subject of Heath, here is his car!  The chimney on the house next door did this! 

Some of these are a bit dull, but you get the general idea.  My kitchen hutch which was chokka with china, is down to a very slim supply. I am thinking I won't bother replacing anything! Is that a defeatist attitude?  I remember someone years ago who had been through a traumatic quake up north, telling me how they lost their materialism after theirs. I didn't really understand at the time, but now, I have the very same thoughts running through my mind.

Maybe I should turn it into a book shelf?  But then, do I really want to have all that 'stuff' around me anymore? I think I'm feeling a little maudlin today, perhaps?

The house is still grimy, dusty and messy. But we have basically pushed everything into corners and piles, and picked up all the fallen furniture, bookcases etc. So it doesn't look nearly as bad now. Here is Mike in the lounge... holding up a broken crystal 5 candlestick holder... You can't see all the broken glass still in the carpet everywhere...

The broken lounge window from the chimney bricks.

Kent - this is your bedroom!   Want to come home and help tidy it up?

  

One box of smashed china - smashed so small lots were almost unrecognisable!

 Hall dresser - the mirror broke... this is just stuff piled on for now.

The mirror that was - outside now..

Ceiling rose in spare room

Thankful for water supplies...

Side of the house where the window broke.

Heath just now in the kitchen.   

My latest update in words:

Thanks so much for everyone's love, care, offers and prayers. Here is another little general update.

Earthquake Update

Sunday 27th February 2011

A general update about our family and how it is affecting us.

We now have power on which is a huge relief.

Water at a very low pressure was turned on last night. It is not high enough for showers or the washing machine, but enough to run some into a basin, and flush a toilet, for which we are very thankful for.

Our phone is back on, although we did dig up our old analogue phone for use up until now. They are calling for all old analogue phones to be sent to Christchurch for this use!

Inside our house we are discovering more and more broken things as we move about sifting through things. For example, I took out a beautiful tray which I always use, this morning to take our breakfast outside, and the corner is all broken off. Things in the back of cupboards are broken and chipped all over the place. The family bathroom porcelain toilet bowl has a huge chip broken off it! We are no different from all the others who are in the same situation, but these are just a few things we are facing.

Last night we discovered the lounge ceiling has some large cracks in one corner, and water has been leaking through.

We have very large antique ceiling roses in each room, and one fell totally (hall), another is dangling by a thin cord (spare bedroom), and the third (lounge) is teetering… so all will have to come down.

There is a coating of gritty dust over everything. It has found its way into every nook and cranny you can imagine. Right to the very back of every cupboard. There is one bedroom (Kent’s) I cannot even get into yet.

We live within the ‘Four Avenues” and therefore part of the CBD. This means we are included in the curfew, which is 6.30pm till 6.30am and have no permission whatsoever to go in our out of our section of our street (one block) during those hours.

At all other times, we can only enter or leave our block of the street if we provide proof of address and personal id.

Thus, we can have no visitors! It is unique to be able to leave all doors and windows open if we so please, all day and night - knowing there is army and police guarding our block/street at both ends! We have never been so safe!

Rubbish is a problem. We are now having to stack piles of ‘good’ rubbish and ‘bad’ rubbish up.

For the last major quake, on Sept 4th 2010, we didn’t bother to claim anything, but this time, we will be claiming for a great amount of stuff.

Mike’s work is ok, although a large crack has appeared. Can you imagine tens of hundreds of tiny nuts, bolts and screws for miles all around the place? This will need to be sorted sometime! Meanwhile, he does plan to open his doors tomorrow morning and maybe some work will come? I hope so!

Dad and Marilyn’s house is ok… although from my unprofessional view, they have some dropping of their floors. The liquefaction there is pretty bad (we have none) and their shop floor is covered in it. It seeped in through the back garden door. They have quite a bit more smashed glass etc, and it is still lying where it all fell. They left the next morning (Wed) down to Queenstown, and will stay there until further notice. They are fine.

Marilyn was at the Crowne Plaza when it happened, with some others, and glass rained from the ceiling as they ran and picked their way through it all, to the outdoor front steps. These too were all buckled and the whole front brick area outside the front was a mess. Marilyn’s car was in the basement, and is still there as far as we know. I have no idea whether it is ok or not! Dad has had to chain up his gates as they are too buckled to close properly, plus the electronics on them are kaput!

They are having literally hundreds of phone calls, (I know - as they all transfer to my cell phone that they have 'a new message' blocking up my phone) so please, if anyone is trying to phone them, don't!

I think I forgot to mention Heath’s car! He turns 15 during March, so in advance had bought a car. One’s first car (especially for a boy??!) is pretty special! Anyway, it was parked safely up the drive until he was going to be able to drive it – but the next door neighbour’s chimney fell onto it, smashing it! Very sad indeed for Heath. He has taken it really well though.

Mike and I are still sleeping in the caravan, but hopefully moving back into our bedroom tonight – depending if we get it tidy enough! Heath and Guy are back in their own beds too!

Mike has taken a lot of photos, but somehow this time, I lost the enthusiasm for taking photos. I have taken a few and will put them on my blog, but they truly do not show the devastation. Google takes you to places to see this anyway.

Everyone has their story. And every story is important and interesting and part of the fabric of the whole experience.

The adrenalin we had for the first few days has now gone, as we face it all through weary eyes. Things are not glamerous. Now we slog through the bleak task of cleaning and tidying, sorting through everything as we go. It seems to go on and on and on. It involves emotions as well as physical. But we are only one family. Many are facing deaths and total destruction of family, homes and businesses. Others on the west side of town are pretty much life as basically normal! As I said last time, these earthquakes are unpredictable as to where they streak through and who will get touched this time.

Mike has a lot of very good pictures so will pop them on here shortly.