Those repairing an earthquake damaged cliff in Christchurch have had to wrangle with home owners who don't want to sell, and relocating a rare flightless moth. Rachel Graham reports.
Repair work on Christchurch's iconic Town Hall, badly damaged in the earthquakes, has nearly hit the halfway mark.
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.
More repairs to the infrastructure as a result of the 2010 & 2011 earthquakes. Boat ramp at New Brighton. Avon River.
More repairs to the infrastructure as a result of the 2010 & 2011 earthquakes. Boat ramp at New Brighton. Avon River.
The Earthquake Commission has announced it is slashing 480 jobs as its repair work in Canterbury enters its final phase.
Ongoing repair and deconstruction work on Victoria Street. A demolition site has been turned to a carpark.
More repairs to the infrastructure as a result of the 2010 & 2011 earthquakes. Hardy Street/Owles Terrace corner (beside the boat launching ramp), New Brighton
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Damage from the February 22nd earthquake in Christchurch. Chimney repair work on Hackthorne Road, Cashmere".
A Christchurch construction firm says businesses who are complaining about losing money on earthquake repair jobs should work more closely with their project managers.
A photograph of an office in the Diabetes Centre. The office furniture has been pushed together to prepare the room for earthquake repair work.
Ongoing repair and deconstruction work on Victoria Street. The car park to the left of the image was left after the demolition of a building.
The Minister for Earthquake Recovery, Gerry Brownlee, says the recovery process from Canterbury's earthquake is moving quickly, despite strong aftershocks yesterday setting back repair work.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Damage from the February 22nd earthquake in Christchurch. Chimney repair work at a house on Hackthorne Road, Cashmere".
Best View - Press "L". After 36 million liters of water mysteriously disappeared from this reservoir on Huntsbury Hill following the February 22nd 6.3 earthquake in Christchurch work has started on repairing it. This image shows just how large the tank is with a work-truck parked inside it. See Video of TV3 News item:
Some Christchurch residents are frustrated at the time it's taking to work out what sort of foundations their homes will require when earthquake repairs are carried out.
A photograph of the stairwell of the Diabetes Centre on Hagley Avenue. There is a workbench in the foreground and a plank of wood on the right side of the stairs. On the landing the wall has been repaired and is unpainted.
Shows a man exhausted after a weekend of watching the All Blacks playing Ireland on TV. His wife understands the frustration of Christchurch residents waiting too long for repairs to properties. Context: Refers to frustrating delays in getting earthquake-related repairs done in Christchurch, this in large part due to slowness of insurance claims and permissions. Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).
Work has finally begun dismantling Lancaster Park in Christchurch, six years after it was damaged beyond repair in the February earthquake. It comes at the same time the city's leaders debate what a new stadium could look like and who will pay.
By closely examining the performance of a 22-storey steel framed building in Christchurch subject to various earthquakes over the past seven years, it is shown that a number of lessons can be learnt regarding the cost-effective consideration of non-structural elements. The first point in this work is that non-structural elements significantly affected the costs associated with repairing steel eccentrically braced frame (EBF) links. The decommissioning or rerouting of non-structural elements in the vicinity of damaged links in the case study building attributed to approximately half the total cost of their repair. Such costs could be significantly reduced if the original positioning of non-structural elements took account of the potential need to repair the EBF links. The second point highlighted is the role that pre-cast cladding apparently played on the distribution and type of damage in the building. Loss estimates obtained following the FEMA P-58 framework vary considerably when cladding is or isnt modelled, both because of changes to drift demands up the height of the building and because certain types of subsequent damage are likely to be cheaper to repair than others. Finally, costly repairs to non-structural partition walls were required not only after the moment magnitude 7.1 earthquake in 2010 but also in multiple aftershocks in the years that followed. Repair costs associated with aftershock events exceeded those from the main event, emphasizing the need to consider aftershocks within modern performance-based earthquake engineering and also the opportunity that exists to make more cost-effective repair strategies following damaging earthquakes.
A photograph of an office in the Diabetes Centre which has been prepared for earthquake repair work. Furniture and other office materials have been stacked in the corner of the room. Several tiles are missing from the ceiling above.
A video of excavators demolishing the former railway station on Moorhouse Avenue. The building was only moderately damaged during the 22 February 2011 earthquake, but repair work was deemed too costly for the co-owner, Science Alive!.
Kaikoura and Wellington businesses operating adjacent to quake damaged buildings may face disruption for years to come as owners drag their feet on repair or demolition work. A Christchurch property owner has been unable to completely re-open for business since the February 2011 earthquake.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Engineers from ECAN and other areas in New Zealand have been inspecting the Waimakariri River stop banks on the coast side of State Highway 1 after the September earthquake. Earthquake damage repair work on the stop bank".
Glazing systems are non-structural elements in a building that, more often than not, appear to be given little consideration in seismic design. Recent experimental work into glazing systems at the University of Canterbury, however, has shown that glazing systems can be very susceptible to serviceability damage, defined as loss of water-tightness. The focus of this paper is to highlight the difference in vulnerability of standard and seismic glazing systems and consider the implications of this for future repair costs and losses. The paper first describes the damage states chosen for glazing units according to the repair strategies required and expected repair costs. This includes three damage states: DS1: Water Leakage, DS2: Gasket Failure and DS3: Frame/Glass Failure. Implementing modern performance-based earthquake engineering, the paper proceeds to highlight a case study comparing costs and expected losses of a standard glazing unit and a seismic glazing unit installed on a case study building. It is shown that the use of seismic glazing units is generally beneficial over time, due to the early onset of serviceability damage in standard glazing units. Finally, the paper provides suggestions for designers aimed at reducing costs related to earthquake induced repairs of glazing.
An intermittent collaboration between the Centre of Contemporary Art and a series of local artists looking to present new work which explores the realities of the post-earthquake cultural landscape in Christchurch. The artworks by Ed Lust, Sam Eng, and Robyn Wester each utilise the empty window space of the window and carport of the damaged COCA building which is awaiting repair.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "City Care workers. From left, Donny Haenga, Mafutga and David Henry enjoying a BBQ put on by City Care for their staff. The trio, from Wellington have work over 100 hours between them since Tuesday when they arrived. 35 specialists from Tauranga, Wellington, Dunedin and Timaru have joined the Christchurch staff with trucks and equipment from around NZ to help with the quake repairs".
As Auckland and Northland brace for more atrocious weather, city leaders are calling for funding to repair the city's broken infrastructure to be along the lines of the help given to Christchurch after the quakes. Auckland deputy mayor Desley Simpson says that the damage so far is equivalent to the biggest non earthquake event the country has ever had and should be treated accordingly. The Opportunities Party says the "alliance" model established after the earthquakes, was effective and would work for Auckland's rebuild, because it provides a structure that the Central Government can fund directly. ToP leader Raf Manji was a Christchurch councillor after the quakes and closely involved in the rebuild. He tells Kathryn Ryan it is vital to ensure water and transport infrastructure is repaired quickly and efficiently, especially with a view to future extreme weather events - and there is much to learn from the post-quake rebuild.
Minister for Christchurch Recovery, Gerry Brownlee drives a huge tractor among debris that spells out 'Due Process' and says 'In order to get Christchurch back on its feet again we have to bring parliament to its knees. Context - The minister says he is happy with the speed of the work being done, as he wants tomake sure those involved in the rebuild portion of the recovery effort are well prepared. 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).
Maori Party MP for Te Tai Tonga, Rahui Katene' is buried up to her neck in earthquake rubble as she reads a newspaper headline referring to her statement that the aftermath of the earthquake has demonstrated 'racism and ethnic profiling'. Rahui Katene's head is disintegrating and two engineers who are examining the damage decide that 'This can't be repaired, it needs to be condemned'. Rahui Katene says the authorities, who kicked a Christchurch family out of a welfare centre that was set up after the Christchurch earthquake that struck on the 4th September, should apologise for judging them too early and shaming them publicly. Mrs Katene was also concerned about claims that Maori youth were being targeted by police. "I've heard from whanau that in one particular area rangatahi who were volunteering in their community and helping their whanau were accused by police of theft. The whanau are trying to work these issues through with the police, but I'm growing concerned about what appears to be ethnic profiling." Quantity: 1 digital cartoon(s).