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Subject: New Zealand hit by earthquake
heraldabc    2/21/2011 8:17:10 PM
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/02/21/new.zealand.earthquake/?hpt=T2 (CNN) -- A 6.3-magnitude earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, Tuesday afternoon, seriously damaged the city's cathedrals, burst water mains, buckled streets and shut down phone service, according to media reports from the region. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck just before 1 p.m. Tuesday (7 p.m. Monday ET), and a 5.6-magnitude aftershock struck about 15 minutes later. The New Zealand Herald reported that phone lines in the area were out, roads were cracked -- in some cases lifted as much as a meter -- and water mains had burst, flooding several streets. Christchurch police told TVNZ that the city's 106-year-old Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament was badly damaged, and a Herald reporter said that half of the building had collapsed. TVNZ reported that the 147-year-old Christchurch Cathedral's spire had toppled, Christchurch Hospital was being evacuated and the airport was closed. The quake caused significant damage to several older buildings, the Herald reporter said. Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker told Radio New Zealand that the rumbling tossed him across the room, that he knew of injuries in the city council building and has heard unconfirmed reports of serious injuries. "That was, in the city central anyway, as violent as the one that happened on the 4th of September," he said. Parker added that streets were jammed as people tried to get out of the city, and he urged people to avoid the water supply. "We've been through this before this once, we now need to think what we did at that time," he said. Southern New Zealand has been plagued by a series of quakes since September, when the area was shaken by a 7.1-magnitude temblor that New Zealand authorities said was the most damaging quake to hit the region since 1931. The earthquake struck in the predawn hours of September 4, and authorities said the deserted streets at that time likely kept injuries to a minimum. There were no deaths from that earthquake. Both the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament and the Anglican Christchurch Cathedral were undergoing repairs after being badly damaged by the September quake. "The quake is significantly smaller than the previous Christchurch earthquake, however it was very shallow and might have been very close to the center of the city," Civil Defense spokesman Vince Cholewa told the New Zealand Herald. TVNZ also reported that its newsroom in Christchurch was badly damaged. ======================================================= From CNN International ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^6 I hope that the news is not as bad as I fear it is. Herald
 
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albywan       2/22/2011 9:03:22 PM
Fuel is being rationed for emergency vehicles... It is not the whole coutry that is affected by the immediate effects of the quake, just the Christchurch/Canterbury region.
 
Fuel for domestic use is hampered also by the lack of electricity to a lot of locations.
 
Out of interest for those not familiar with Christchurch, it is considered the gateway for international travellers to the South Island (our more touristy Island) It is a small sprawling flat city with little in the way of high rise structures. It also sits atop of a large water aquifer (liquification being a major damage cause in the quakes since September)
 
The city is also home to the US Antartic mission flights (Operation Deep Freeze) sharing the international airport
 
There is a major (for NZ) army base on the outskirts of town, (Burnham)
 
Port facilites are located around 10 km from the city centre, on the otherside of a large range of hills...
 
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heraldabc    Mayor of ChrisChurch.   2/23/2011 9:44:49 AM
 
That imterview was from  the September earthquake. The reports that follows it are from the recent February 21 earthquake.
 
Double hammered. Those poor people just didn't have any luck at all. What must the rescue people be going though right now?
 
I traveled on business through the cleanup aftermath of the Greensberg, Kansas tornado event that utterly destroyed the town a few years ago and this is just as horrible, maybe far worse as far as the total damage.
 
If there is any good news, it is this, 
 http://www.kansas.com/static/slides/050507tornadoaerials/" />
http://media.kansas.com/static/slides/050507tornadoaerials/images/_MG_0319.jpg" height="400" width="600" /> 
 
became this is what they did. That rapid recovery is what I hope can happen for Christchurch.   .
 
Hope always and trust your neighbors.
 
H.
 
      . 
 
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Shawnc       2/23/2011 11:25:38 AM
All the best to the Kiwis.
 
By sheer coincidence, the first foreign disaster relief team was already in country.
 
There was a company size unit from the Singapore Army's Guards formation in Christchurch for a bilateral exercise, and they pretty much were deployed to the scene within hours of the earthquake to assist the NZDF. They were followed by a 55 man urban search and rescue team, 2 C130s and a KC-135 that reached New Zealand on Wednesday afternoon.
 
 
 
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Shawnc       2/23/2011 12:22:23 PM
All the best to the Kiwis.
 
By sheer coincidence, the first foreign disaster relief team was already in country.
 
There was a company size unit from the Singapore Army's Guards formation in Christchurch for a bilateral exercise, and they pretty much were deployed to the scene within hours of the earthquake to assist the NZDF. They were followed by a 55 man urban search and rescue team, 2 C130s and a KC-135 that reached New Zealand on Wednesday afternoon.
 
 
 
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albywan       2/23/2011 4:27:32 PM
Overwhelmed by the support shown....
 
So far we have rescue teams here from Australia, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, UK and the US...
 
Donations from many friendly nations, even Tonga...
 
The "life carries on" attitude shown by those effected is amazing... Rescuers working all day, then wandering the hospital wards at night looking for their own missing family members...
 
The focus for the rescuers is on the living still trapped in buildings, then they will shift to the recovery of bodies from other locations.
 
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SteveJH       2/24/2011 5:14:15 AM
I just hope that at least some of the people still missing are found alive. Was listening to the radio in the car earlier and they said they hadn't found anymore survivers in the last 24 hours.
 
Also hope that at least some of the NZ Emergency Services people can get a bit of a rest now that Emergency Service members from overseas have arrived.
 
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heraldabc    How to help.   2/26/2011 2:49:46 AM
 
 
 
These organizations have set up up funds and aid programs for the earthquake victims and take direct action in the post earthquake relief..
 
Beware of scammers. You will note that the American and UN charities are not included.. There is a reason for that. You want your donation to go where it is intended. Call it the Haiti Lesson.   
 
Herald
 
 
 
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