Our programme this morning is completely devoted to the aftermath of yesterday's Christchurch earthquake. Civil Defence says rescue teams in Christchurch are still recovering people alive who have been trapped in buildings in the city overnight. The emergency department at Christchurch Hospital is extremely busy with many seriously injured people. After an emergency cabinet meeting yesterday, the Prime Minister flew to Christchurch to view the aftermath of the quake first hand. Numerous stories, some of survival, others more tragic are emerging in the aftermath of the quake.
In Avonside, one of the suburbs most badly affected by the September 4th earthquake in Christchurch, a second massive clean-up operation is underway.
There are suggestions this morning that a Mossad agent working for the Israeli government may have been one of those killed in the Christchurch earthquake.
A pub in a church might seem unusual, but then life in Christchurch after both the September and February earthquakes has been anything but normal.
A lack of building inspections and the engineers to carry them out has come under further scrutiny at the Royal Commission of inquiry into the Canterbury earthquakes.
As for the demolition of the building, The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority deconstruction manager, Warwick Isaacs, says while it will be managed carefully, it is still risky.
There are fears that Christchurch secondary students' educations will continue to suffer as their school days are condensed in the aftermath of the earthquake.
The families of some of those killed by falling rubble in February's Christchurch earthquake are desperate to know why buildings that had been deemed safe collapsed.
The family of a young man who died while protecting his sister during February's earthquake in Christchurch says the building they were in wasn't safe.
Today marks one week since the devastating earthquake struck Christchurch and overnight, the death toll from the rubble has risen. 154 bodies have now been recovered.
Hundreds of birds and other creatures had to be evacuated from a Christchurch aquarium and kiwi enclosure, while others were put-down after last week's earthquake.
The chief coroner, Judge Neil MacLean, says it may never be possible to put names to the remains of twelve victims of the Christchurch earthquake.
Despite Government attempts to play down reports that officers of the Israeli security agency Mossad were caught up in the Christchurch earthquake, several questions remain today.
Several iwi are joining a pan-tribal hui against new oil drilling and mining; The body of the former Maori Women's Welfare League national president, Meagan Joe, will be moved from a Napier marae to another in Mohaka in northern Hawkes Bay later today; Marae and Maori families around the country are opening their doors to Canterbury earthquake victims who have also suffered from domestic violence; The lead agency for Whanau Ora in Whangarei says it could use a few more Nannies on Wheels.
In 1987, Jack Perkins recorded an award-winning documentary capturing the life, the sounds and the personalities of Cathedral Square in Christchurch. Thirty years on, Deborah Nation parallels that experience with the sounds of September 2011 as engineer Gabrielle Parker escorts her Shrough the earthquake Red Zone into the square as it is today.
The cost of insurance could rise by 20 per cent as a result of the Government bailout of AMI Insurance and the mounting cost of the Canterbury earthquakes.
Church bells tolled around the country at exactly 12.51 this afternoon - one week on from the deadly Christchurch earthquake, which may have claimed as many as 240 lives.
Canterbury Museum says because of the earthquake it's likely to be weeks before they can open a sealed time capsule found under a statue brought down by the quake.
The first report into the damage done to three large buildings in the Christchurch earthquake is recommending urgent steps be taken around the country to strengthen buildings with stairwells.
Public bus tours of Christchurch's red zone will start off with a warning that the passengers could be trapped by an earthquake and may not make it out alive.
A payrise of nearly 70 thousand for the Christchurch City Council's chief executive has stunned people in the community, many of whom have been struggling financially since the earthquakes.
Remembering the Christchurch February 2011 earthquake; the Crown is considering an appeal after bail was granted to Kim Dotcom; and Murray McCully's emails appear to demonstrate a desire to resist China's advances in the Pacific.
In the hours after the February 2011 Canterbury earthquake, Chessie Henry's father Chris Henry, a Kaikoura-based doctor, crawled into makeshift tunnels in the collapsed CTV building to rescue the living and look for the dead. Six years later, Chessie interviewed Chris in an attempt to understand the trauma that lead her father to burnout. In her book just published, We Can Make A Life: A memoir of family, earthquakes and courage, Chessie Henry considers the psychological cost of heroism and unravels stories and memories from her family history.
A memorial service for the 166 victims of the Christchurch earthquake has been held at Westminster Abbey. Attended by the Prince of Wales and the High Commissioner for New Zealander, the ceremony was led by the Dean of Westminster.
Ethnic migrants from Christchurch displaced by the earthquake are being given some much needed cultural and spiritual comfort from a centre in Auckland's Waitakere district.
Insurance premiums look set to rise by up to a third and even more to meet the cost of the Christchurch earthquakes and other disasters overseas.
The Social Development Minister says staff are having to be flexible when deciding what financial support those caught up in the Christchurch earthquake are eligible for.
A spokesperson for the families of the victims of the Christchurch earthquake says without legal representation their voice will not be heard during the Royal Commission.
The Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission will hear this week that the cost of upgrading the city's unreinforced masonry buildings is more than the buildings are worth.
People caught up in February's earthquake in Christchurch want to know why a Royal Commission of inquiry isn't going to apportion any blame for building collapses.
