It is hard to imagine the destruction which surrounds this area on such a beautiful clear calm sunny spring morning, It seems as if Christchuch has changed forever. I wonder how long it will take us to recover.
Shows three new houses sinking into liquefaction after another series of strong aftershocks in early January. A sign reads 'Parklands' and an observer confidently asserts that it is safe to rebuild. Context: the suburb of Parklands in north east Christchurch has been badly damaged by liquifaction. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
A very large woman stands wedged between two rows of concrete pillars eating a huge cream bun. She says 'Christmas fare protection... it helps prevent lateral spread!' Context - overeating at Christmas and lateral spreading, which is associated with liquefaction and tends to occur near streams and waterways as the soil mass moves towards them. Reference to the Christchurch earthquake of 4th September 2010. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
Text reads 'What??... Is it another quake?.. No, it's just Gerry Brownlee rushing the CERA bill through'. The cartoon shows the huge back of Minister for Christchurch Recovery Gerry Brownlee moving energetically and forcefully to get the CERA bill past its third reading. Context - The bill establishes the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (Cera) and empowers it to lead reconstruction efforts in Christchurch. It gives Cera specific powers to get information from any source, to requisition and build on land and to carry out demolitions. It can also take over local authorities if they are not working effectively on recovery work. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
Two huge wrestlers, one representing 'Port Hills fault' and the other 'Greendale fault' struggle together over a broken Christchurch. Another wrestler, representing 'Other faults' appears in the distance yelling 'Is it my turn yet?' Context - Christchurch has now had three major earthquakes and thousands of aftershocks. It now appears likely that the Christchurch quakes resulted from activity on a fault extending directly eastward from the Alpine fault that remained unknown until last year, says Roger Musson, a seismologist at the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh. The new fault first came to light last September (4th) when a stronger but less calamitous quake shook Darfield, 40 kilometres west of Christchurch. Musson says the latest quake (Feb 22, 2011) probably resulted from an eastward continuation of activity on the same fault. "It has probably not moved for tens of thousands of years, so lots of strain built up," says Musson. The third major quake happened on 13th June 2011. (New Scientist - February 22, 2011) Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
Successful urban regeneration projects generate benefits that are realised over a much longer timeframe than normal market developments and benefits well beyond those that can be uplifted by a market developer. Consequently there is substantial evidence in the literature that successful place-making and urban regeneration projects are usually public-private partnerships and involve a funder, usually local or central government, willing to contribute ‘patient’ capital. Following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes that devastated the centre of Christchurch, there was an urgent need to rebuild and revitalise the heart of the city, and increasing the number of people living in or near the city centre was seen as a key ingredient of that. In October 2010, an international competition was launched to design and build an Urban Village, a project intended to stimulate renewed residential development in the city. The competition attracted 58 entrants from around world, and in October 2013 the winning team was chosen from four finalists. However the team failed to secure sufficient finance, and in November 2015 the Government announced that the development would not proceed. The Government was unwilling or unable to recognise that an insistence on a pure market approach would not deliver the innovative sustainable village asked for in the competition brief, and failed to factor in the opportunity cost to government, local government, local businesses and the wider Christchurch community of delaying by many years the residential development of the eastern side of the city. As a result, the early vision of the vitality that a thriving residential neighbourhood would bring to the city has not yet been realised.
An entry from Gallivanta's blog for 27 September 2013 entitled, "We did it.... the Bull is here to stay :)".
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.
A Christchurch man, whose house was damaged in the earthquakes, has challenged his insurer's CEO to live in it if she truly believes it's repairable.
Damage to a building on Colombo Street. Scaffolding has been constructed against the wall and it has blue and yellow tarp to protect it from the rain.
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 28 June 2013 entitled, "Keeping it real: Living with Anxiety".
An entry from Deb Robertson's blog for 23 December 2011 entitled, "Noooooo! It's happened again... More earthquakes".
The former Ozone Dressing Sheds in North New Brighton, with broken and boarded-up windows. The photographer comments, "This is the Ozone as it was before it was demolished. It appeared to have been in the process of being redecorated internally, but the February Christchurch earthquake seems to have caused its demise".
The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority says it could step into the property market to stop land prices sky-rocketing but is confident it won't have to.
Damage to a building on Colombo Street. Scaffolding has been constructed across the front and it has a blue and yellow tarp to protect it from the rain.
Caption reads: "At the moment we’re trying to carry on like everything is normal. It’s not easy. It’s hard sometimes to remember what things were like before the earthquake."
A house in Hororata. The chimney has fallen, taking the fence with it. Part of it can still be seen lying on the ground.
An earthquake memories story from Susan Kovacs, Mental Health GP Liaison, Rural Canterbury Primary Health Organisation, titled, "We watched it all unfolding".
Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods says it could take 18 months to decide who is liable for the repairs for 660 home-owners caught in legal limbo. They've bought homes where they thought all the earthquake damage had been repaired - and now find more problems have emerged. Ms Woods told us it's not clear who is liable for these repairs - and it could take as long as 18 months to resolve that basic liability issue. EQC's chief executive Sid Miller has already apologised. He tells Susie Ferguson it's an issue he's been aware of in the year he has been with EQC.
The Labour Christchurch East MP Lianne Dalziel says the city council has made a terrible decision about how it organises help for earthquake victims and it needs to be changed urgently.
A government package to help small businesses affected by Monday's earthquake will help according to one of the groups administering it , Enterprise North Canterbury, which has been through it before.
The Green Party has spelt out how it would impose an earthquake levy on higher earning taxpayers, to fund the rebuild of Christchurch, if it becomes part of the next Government.
The collapsed Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Lyttelton. Wire fencing has been placed outside the building to keep the public away. Pot plants have been placed along it to brighten it up.
Stonework from St John's Anglican Church where it fell during the 4 September earthquake. It is October and the daffodils have almost died.
An earthquake memories story from Kate Cooper, Associate Clinical Nurse Manager, Emergency Department, Christchurch Hospital, titled, "Sharing made it so much easier".
An entry from Roz Johnson's blog for 7 February 2012 entitled, "It Makes Me Want to Sing".
Oscar von Sierakowski’s factory and shop was built on the corner of Colombo and Tuam Streets in 1906. It boasted that it was the largest wire work factory in the colonies, producing decorati…
An elderly man, dressed in a plum coloured suit and bow tie, stands gazing at his nearly completed home. It is September 1900, and this is no ordinary home, it is reputed to be the largest wooden r…
A photograph submitted by Scott Thomas to the QuakeStories website. The description reads, "The picture is of St Martins, a suburb just 2 minutes drive up the street from my place. The photo does not do it justice but this road was like the moon, it used to be flat and it is wet due to burst pipes. Photo taken shortly after the 22 Feb 2011 earthquake".
Some 10 years on from the devastating Canterbury quakes, the wait is still not over when it comes to law changes needed to improve the Earthquake Commission. The government will not get it done until 2021, if it's re-elected. Meanwhile cases of botched quake repairs needing a fix are still flooding into EQC, Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods told Checkpoint.