Kaiapoi looks to rebuild buisness district following quake
Audio, Radio New Zealand
A plan to revitalise the centre of the small rural service town of Kaiapoi will be fast-tracked in the wake of the Canterbury earthquake.
A plan to revitalise the centre of the small rural service town of Kaiapoi will be fast-tracked in the wake of the Canterbury earthquake.
Several earthquake volunteers, including those who helped deliver more than 400 tonnes of food to hard hit suburbs, have been recognised at a ceremony in the Canterbury town of Kaiapoi.
People in the Canterbury town of Kaiapoi say they are determined to preserve their community despite learning yesterday hundreds of earthquake-damaged homes will have to go.
Kaiapoi, just north of Christchurch, has unveiled a bold new plan for the parts of the town wiped off the map in the Canterbury earthquakes. The plan proposes having house boats on the river that runs through the town, there'll be a place for campervans to park up and a covered sports facility is on the cards.
Construction teams are working to fix earthquake damaged stopbanks in the Waimakariri and Kaiapoi rivers near Christchurch.
In its latest update, the Earthquake Commission says it will have to manage repairs to 50-thousand homes moderately or seriously damaged by the Canterbury earthquake four weeks ago.
The Canterbury Civil Defence Duty Manager, James Thompson, says the Waimakariri River could breach its banks just south of Kaiapoi, and as a preacaution they have evacuated the Riverlands Holiday Park.
Almost a hundred homes north of Christchurch are declared unsafe to live in, 86 people who worked at Kaiapoi's New World supermarket are now jobless after Saturday's earthquake destroyed the store and a top defence official quits following allegations he lied on his CV.
In response to the Canterbury earthquakes, the Government has built two villages in the suburbs of Linwood and Kaiapoi to provide temporary accomodation for those who've lost their homes. Our Christchurch correspondent, Katy Gosset, visited the Linwood Village and spoke to residents as they prepared for Christmas.
The Earthquake Commission says it's likely homes in the Christchurch suburb of Bexley, which sank and cracked in Saturday's quake, will be rebuilt. People in the hardest hit areas of Canterbury have been learning more about their insurance entitlements, as the commission's assessors arrive in Kaiapoi and Bexley to begin evaluating the damage.