Christchurch, New Zealand devastated by earthquake
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The South Island city of Christchurch and New Zealand’s second biggest city, was shocked by a 6.3-magnitude earthquake. The tremor caused widespread damage as it occurred at a shallow depth of 5km (3.1 miles) during lunchtime when Christchurch was at its busiest.
The damage is said to be far worse than after the 7.1-magnitude quake on September 4, which left two people seriously injured but no fatalities. The tremor sent the spire of Christchurch Cathedral, a landmark in the center of the city, toppling into the square below.
John Gurr, a camera technician, told Reuters news agency the area outside the cathedral was “like a warzone”.
Power and telephone lines have been knocked out, while burst pipes have deluged streets with water. The suburbs of Lyttelton and New Brighton are reportedly “unlivable”.
New Zealand experiences more than 14,000 earthquakes a year, of which only around 20 have a magnitude in excess of 5.0. The last fatal earthquake was in 1968, when a 7.1-magnitude tremor killed three people on the South Island’s western coast. Tuesday’s was the country’s worst natural disaster since a 1931 quake in the North Island city of Napier killed 256 people.
Christchurch, New Zealand – It’s Cathedral, before and after the quake
THE SHAKY ISLES
The Shaky Isles or Shaky Islands is a nickname for New Zealand. At one time this nickname was used in New Zealand itself, though its usage there is now seen as dated; it is still fairly widely used in Australia.
The term derived from New Zealand’s frequent seismic activity. The islands lie on the margin of two colliding tectonic plates, the Pacific and Indo-Australian Plates. Earthquakes are common, particularly in the southwest of the South Island and in the central North Island, and the North Island’s scenery is marked by several active and dormant volcanic cones. The phrase is at worst only very mildly derogatory, and is usually only used humorously with no pejorative connotations. New Zealand lies above an area of the Earth’s crust where two tectonic plates (Australia-Pacific and Pacific) collide.
EDITOR”S NOTE: – I lived in Christchurch for 12 months in the mid-1970s, so this is more than just another earthquake.
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Thanks for your article Holte, and thanks for your concern Mike.
My family and friends are all OK, but it looks like Christchurch really got hammered this time. The previous Richter 7.1 earthquake was quite deep, but this one, the 6.3 was only 5km down (as mentioned in Holte’s article) and had a devastating effect. Many of the buildingwhich survived the September shock, just collapsed this time. We’re getting continuous updates about the casualties, rescues of trapped people and animals, pictures of the damage, not just to the Central Business District (which is just about gone) but to the far-flung suburbs.
We’ll survive. Our Civil Defence teams are great. Highly trained and effective, they’re always in demand around the world to lend their expertise. Our infrastructure is mostly prepared for a major shock, as are most of our buildings. It was just really bad luck that this shock hit, before they had completed repairs to buildings moderately damaged by the september event.
Again, thanks for your support, and for all the messages of support from the MMA family.
We’re relieved to hear that you and your family are OK Doug. My thoughts go out to those who lost family.
We are hopeful that Robert Douglas, one of our writers, and Ryan Hellyer, our designer, are OK, along with their families. Both live in NZ, and although not in the quake area, I am sure the repercussions will be felt all over this beautiful land.