BeckerFraserPhotos September 2010 photograph 088

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A sand volcano in the Halswell Primary School grounds near the playground. Sand volcanoes were caused by liquefaction where the soil loses its strength during the earthquake and the silt rises upwards, ejecting out of a hole like magma in a volcano.

Footpath cracks next to Rydal Park.

Images, eqnz.chch.2010

Sand volcanoes put the silt all over the road.

BeckerFraserPhotos September 2010 photograph 090

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A sand volcano in the Halswell Primary School grounds. Sand volcanoes were caused by liquefaction where the soil loses its strength during the earthquake and the silt rises upwards, ejecting out of a hole like magma in a volcano.

BeckerFraserPhotos October 2010 photograph 003

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A typical "sand volcano" caused by liquefaction where the soil loses its strength during the earthquake and the silt rises upwards, ejecting out of a hole like magma in a volcano.

Rydal Street sand volcanos

Images, eqnz.chch.2010

It would have been a glorious Spring day in Christchurch had it not been for the magnitude 7.1 earthquake at 4:30 am. All the water and silt you can see covering the street in this photo erupted from the ground following the earthquake.

BeckerFraserPhotos October 2010 photograph 038

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A misaligned brick wall in front of a property with silt still piled up around it. During the earthquake, liquefaction drove silt to the surface where it erupted out of the ground like a volcano and formed a pile like the one seen here.