Deconstruction of central Christchurch back on track
Audio, Radio New Zealand
The removal of rubble from the earthquake-stricken centre of Christchurch will start again today, once the worst of the ice in the central city melts.
The removal of rubble from the earthquake-stricken centre of Christchurch will start again today, once the worst of the ice in the central city melts.
Six years after Christchurch's destructive 6.3 magnitude earthquake the rebuild programme is now being used to provide training for workers from the region.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister has revealed the rebuild of Christchurch's damaged sewage and water pipes will be quite a bit more expensive than predicted.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister says he's instructed government agencies to prosecute any fraudulent activity during the Christchurch rebuild, to the full extent of the law.
Some Christchurch community groups say a programme to rebuild the city's wastewater and storm water systems to a pre-earthquake equivalent isn't good enough.
The task of rebuilding Christchurch is being compared to what was required to restore the Japanese city of Kobe after its massive earthquake in 1995.
The creation of a new unit within the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority to oversee the rebuilding of central Christchurch is being welcomed by business leaders.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister says he's instructed government agencies to prosecute any fraudulent activity during the Christchurch rebuild, to the full extent of the law.
The rebuild of the city of Christchurch is almost half way there five years on from the Canterbury earthquake that shattered the city and killed 185.
A further round of fraud cases sent to the police by the Earthquake Commission may just be the beginning as the rebuild of Christchurch moves into high gear.
A story of hope, at least when it comes to the rebuilding challenge ahead, particularly of Christchurch's badly damaged Cathedral. The Australian city of Newcastle suffered a major earthquake in 1989, and over the next few years put huge effort into rebuilding, virtually brick by brick, its ruined Cathedral. John McNaughton, who was the Lord mayor of Newcastle who oversaw the rebuild, joins us.
It's been more than seven years since the fatal 6.3 earthquake broke thousands of Christchurch homes, and yet many homeowners are still waiting for repairs, re-repairs, or to settle with EQC.
A woman of a relative who died in the CTV building in the February earthquake says more needs to be done to identify unknown faultlines before rebuilding work can start in Christchurch.
The Christchurch City Council is looking to Scandinavia for help with the earthquake re-build. Two Danish based urban design experts are working with the Council over the next four weeks to develop a draft plan for rebuilding the central city.
Roading contractors are already repairing many Christchurch streets damaged by last week's earthquake.
The first permanent repairs to Canterbury homes damaged in September's earthquake will start today.
Topics - it's been described as the 'Downton Effect' - a revival of more formal dinner parties as the British try to bring back fine dining. Today we learned that insurance companies have completed just 15 per cent of rebuilds and 10 per cent of over-cap repairs more than three years after the Canterbury earthquakes. A series of rallies are being held in five Australian cities today by New Zealanders protesting against legislation which denies them rights to welfare. Commuters are cautiously optimistic about a radical revamp proposed for Wellington's rush-hour rail service.
A prominent Christchurch property investor says the Government's anchor projects meant to help rebuild the city faster, has instead slowed it down. After the 2011 earthquake, the Government launched a recovery plan for the CBD, which had 16 anchor projects designed to spur on the rebuild. However, many have been plagued by delays and are still unfinished. Property investor Antony Gough told RNZ reporter Anan Zaki that unlike the Government, it was the private sector which ploughed ahead with the rebuild.
More than 300 people turned out to a meeting in Christchurch last night to hear about botched Earthquake Commission repairs.
Canterbury homeowners are questioning the validity of a survey which was supposed to independently test the quality of earthquake repairs.
Warwick Isaacs, the manager of demolitions for the Christchurch Earthquake Recovery Authority was in the red zone when the magnitude 6 quake struck.
Fletcher Construction says it may take years to repair an estimated 50-thousand homes in Canterbury following the September 4th earthquake.
Divine Cakes in Christchurch has had a tough past five years building up again after the 2011 earthquakes.
As Christchurch prepares to mark 10 years since its deadly earthquake, the impact of that day continues to be felt differently. The less affluent eastern suburbs, which bore the brunt of the damage, continue to lag behind the rest of the city in their recovery. The former dean of Christchurch and fellow east sider, Peter Beck, told Conan Young that while government agencies such as EQC often failed people in their hour of need, what did not fail was the willingness of people to help out their neighbours.
The Earthquake Commission has brought forward its deadline for repairing thousands of earthquake-damaged properties in Canterbury by 12 months.
Some Christchurch homeowners fear they're being rail roaded into using the Earthquake Commission's preferred builders when it comes to earthquake repairs.
Frustrated Christchurch home-owners have delivered a 3000 strong petition to the government, calling for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into shoddy earthquake repairs.
Group action may be taken against the Earthquake Commission over the quality of repairs to damaged Christchurch homes.
The destruction of the Radio Network building in Christchurch has prompted hopes that explosive demolition could be used to bring down other earthquake-damaged buildings.
Heritage supporters are hoping that serious earthquake damage wrought upon Christchurch cemeteries will be repaired- but the issue of who funds that work remains unresolved.