A graphic showing proposed new buildings for central Christchurch.
Fletcher Construction has won the largest building contract in New Zealand history to repair half of the Canterbury homes damaged in last month's earthquake.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Demolition underway on the Manchester Courts Building. Street sign dwarfed by the large mound of soil alongside the building".
In 2016, the Building (Earthquake-prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016 was introduced to address the issue of seismic vulnerability amongst existing buildings in Aotearoa New Zealand. This Act introduced a mandatory scheme to remediate buildings deemed particularly vulnerable to seismic hazard, as recommended by the 2012 Royal Commission into the Canterbury earthquake sequence of 2010–2011. This Earthquake-prone Building (EPB) framework is unusual internationally for the mandatory obligations that it introduces. This article explores and critiques the operation of the scheme in practice through an examination of its implementation provisions and the experiences of more recent seismic events (confirmed by engineering research). This analysis leads to the conclusion that the operation of the current scheme and particularly the application of the concept of EPB vulnerability excludes large numbers of (primarily urban) buildings which pose a significant risk in the event of a significant (but expected) seismic event. As a result, the EPB scheme fails to achieve its goals and instead may create a false impression that it does so
NZ Army medics arriving outside the PGC Building in Christchurch after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A banner listing the 18 people who died in the PGC building collapse.
Page 1 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Tuesday 17 May 2011.
Page 5 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Friday 11 March 2011.
Page 3 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Thursday 10 March 2011.
Page 9 of Section B of the Christchurch Press, published on Wednesday 2 March 2011.
Page 12 of Section B of the Christchurch Press, published on Saturday 5 March 2011.
Page 7 of Section B of the Christchurch Press, published on Saturday 26 February 2011.
Page 1 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Thursday 24 February 2011.
Page 4 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Friday 15 April 2011.
Page 3 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Wednesday 23 March 2011.
Page 8 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Thursday 23 February 2012.
Page 4 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Monday 13 May 2013.
Page 2 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Saturday 2 April 2011.
Page 3 of Section A of the Christchurch Press, published on Monday 16 May 2011.
Page 3 of Section C of the Christchurch Press, published on Saturday 25 January 2014.
A photograph of the new Press building and shipping containers supporting the facade of the Isaac Theatre Royal on Gloucester Street.
A photograph of the new Press building and shipping containers supporting the facade of the Isaac Theatre Royal on Gloucester Street.
Damage to the Lyttelton Hotel on Norwich Quay. The top of the building has crumbled, bringing the roof down with it. Bricks have fallen on the awning and all along the footpath. Wire fencing and road cones have been used to create a cordon around the building.
Damaged buildings along London Street. Wire fencing has been used to keep people away. To the left is the Volcano Cafe, centre the Lava Bar and on the right is a fish and chip shop. A pile of rubble lies on the street from the damaged buildings.
A photograph of building rubble at 181 Peterborough Street.
A photograph of a detail of the Whitcoulls Building.
A photograph of a detail of the Whitcoulls Building.
A photograph of a detail of the Whitcoulls Building.
A video of a tour through the Christchurch central city Red Zone. The video includes footage of the Hotel Grand Chancellor, Victoria Square, the Forsyth Barr building, Colombo Street, Gloucester Street, Cathedral Square, the BNZ building, Cashel Mall, and the Kathmandu store on High Street.
A video about the time capsule found in the foundations of the former Press Building in Cathedral Square. Heritage consultant Jenny May shows the contents of the time capsule, including several coins, newspaper articles, and messages. The capsule was left by the architects and the people working on the building, rather than the editors of The Press.