EQ Update...

It's now Monday 28th Feb - 6 days since the jolt.

We have power and water back on at Desmend St - though still having to boil drinking water. Maria was back in work last Friday and has gone in to Solid Energy this afternoon.

Friday was a rainy day and not much was attempted at Kingsford with the clear up. Instead I had a cycle across town to check up on Di and Geoff in Hillsborough. They had sustained a bit of damage to their property but their kitchen had 'exploded' - or at least the contents of their cupvoards and shelves and they were still in clean up mode. I took meander back through Sydenham and clocked a bit more of the devastation.

We went across to Kinsford again on Saturday and along with some friends and colleagues of Elaine we more or let de-silted Matt and Lou's garden. The access drive still has about a 6 inch layer in places but I think they are leaving that for the men with the excavators!

Despite it being back breaking and stinky, filthy work, there was a real team spirit as we dug and barrowed the s(h)ilt away. Strangers at the start of the exercise - pals at the end. And other strangers - from as far away as Methven and Mt Sommers - pulling up in cars with bags of biscuits and bottles of fresh water. One bloke turned up with a wheel barrow and spade and just got stuck in. No-one knew who he was - he didn't talk much - just kept pushing the barrow back and forth. When he finally left and said his farewells, it was clear he was an East European - helping a west European - over here, that's simply the Cantabrian spirit! Everyone is red and black!



We hosted couple of pals for supper on Saturday evening once we had returned from Matt and Lou's - curry and champagne - what a mix! Every now and then, though, I kept getting a whiff of the silt - must have been impregnated in my skin, or nostril hairs!!

Sunday we decided to have a change around in the house. Sarah had been sleeping on the floor in our room and Chris had moved into the TV room downstairs - as the 'south wing' that contained their bedrooms had become too 'shakey'! We decided to reconvert the downstairs study back into a bedroom for Sarah - and therefore my office would reside upstairs in the wobbly section! She seemed much happier about the new arrangements - wouldn't be kept awake all night by the snoring - nevermind the aftershocks!

Sunday was actually a lovely sunny day, so Maria and I had a wander around Hagley Park in the afternoon. Although not as catastrophic as the damage wreaked in the CBD and in the Eastern suburbs, the Park has its fair share of scars from the quake. There are several trees down.


Some of the ornamental lakes are either drinaed or draining.


There is cracking on most of the paths and plenty of liquifaction. The golf course is a mess - all of the fairways are full of silt patches - it looks like more bunkers than grass. And boy does it stink!



The greens have developed 'growths' - one reminded me of a a mini-Hobitton!


The practice green outside the club-house has a gaping crack running along it. The greenkeeper is going to be busy for a while...



The Botanical Gardens are normally packed on a Sunday afternoon at this time of year. There is usually a free live music event held on the main lawn. Today it was deserted.



The only sound that disturbed the silence was the the thumping-whirl of the army helicopters that circle periodically overhead.


It not only looks like a war zone - it's starting to sound like one!

The Clear Up Begins.

It wasn't a great night's sleep, Tuesday night that is. The aftershocks kept rolling on through. There was a particularly large one at around 3.30am which woke me and I spent the next hour or so unsuccessfully counting sheep. I did get a bit more sleep before it was time to get up and set about getting on with life in the Earthquake zone!

I think we actually spent the morning on Skype letting worried relatives we were all 'safe and sound'. The TV was on in the kitchen and we had a steady stream of information regarding the situation downtown and the ongoing efforts to rescue people from a couple of buildings that had collapsed with significant people within.

We still had no water and the swimming pool - our prefered source of toilet flushing water - was emptying fast. Time to fill a dustbin with whatever water was left!

Ironically, next door had had the demolition gang in over the past few days knocking down their Sept-EQ-damaged house (the small one that they had been living in rather than the huge one they were having built). They were literally finishing off that morning and Nicky managed to pursuade them to remove the fallen wall from our driveway. Job done in no time at all - it would have taken hours by hand! Another bonus was that one of the guys informed us of an artesian well in next-door's garden - so my concerns over a lack of water supply we lessened. At least I would be able to have a wash down on the river bank in clean water - even if it would be in view of those across the river in Hagley Park!

We got a visit from Maria's boss, Charles (Chops) and his wife Kelly. They were making sure we were alright and offered water as they already had their mains supply back on, plus had had plenty of emergency supply stored. How organised!

Maria and I decided to head on over to Matt and Lou's in the car - to see if we could help them with their clear up. We only got as far as Edgeware Road along Hills Road before we had to turn back - the road was unpassable - with vast amounts of water and silt deposited from the liquifaction during the shake. Driving back along Edgeware Road was like driving along a beach - with cars stranded in silt and sink holes littering the roads.


A cordon had been established around the 'Four Avenues' - preventing people from entering the centre of town - the police and army on patrol with their armoured vehicles. A very strange sight for Christchurch indeed.



We decided to take Chops and Kelly up on their offer of a coffee so headed to their place in Fendalton, via the New World supermarket. There was a small queue of people waiting patiently to be allowed their turn inside, which we joined, and patiently waited! There was a remarkable calm in the store. No real evidence of panic buying - apart from Maria grabbing a few bars of Whittakers Chocolate! So at least we would be able to feed ourselves for the next few days.

Maria had received a phone call from a colleague at Solid Energy and she headed into work for an hour or so to help with a bit of clearing up.

Wednesday evening was pretty event-less. A few shakes but nothing too serious.

Thursday morning arrived - it was a late start as we had slept in - must have been catching up on some missed sleep.

Sarah headed off to one of her friends for something to do. Post earthquakes were pretty boring as the Mall's were all shut!

Maria and I made another attempt at getting over to Matt and Lou's - this time by bike however. It was quite a slow ride across to their place. There was a lot to take in as we passed through Merivale and St Albans. Many of the areas and roads had been badly affected by silting and people were barrowing their personal deposits into piles on the roads at the front of their properties. Where the water from the liquifaction had dried, it was very dusty, with a sharp easterly whipping up dust clouds into our faces. As well as being dry and irritating to our eyes, there was also a distinct whiff of sewerage in the air. Not very nice cycling conditions at all!

Matt and Lou's street - Kingsford St - had been very badly affected back in Sept. They had fared no better this time around. Actually, it was a real disaster zone. The road was all over the place - layers of silt everywhere, huge puddles of......well let's just assume it was water..... sink holes.



At least there were some contractors there with their Bobcats starting the job of clearing the silt piles that the residents were piling up. It was a real hive of activity to be honest - at least at the first part of the road. TV cameras capturing the efforts of the locals plus a few student volunteers who had been organised via Facebook.

It's quite a way down Kingsford before you arrive at Matt and Lou's. Far enough that the helpers hadn't arrived there yet. In fact it appeared deserted - an eerie atmosphere - I think a lot of the residents had simply packed their bags and left.



Matt and Lou were busy de-silting their plot - helped by Eioghan and Elaine. I got stuck in too and we soon had a fair bit transferred out onto the street ready for pick-up.


Actually, it was pretty exhausting work. Digging hard, damp, compacted silt is back-breaking work. Thank goodness for tea-breaks.

Their place had taken another bashing from the shake - further damaging the structure and sinking a few more inches into the soft ground on which it currently resides. It's habitable - just. No power or water yet - probably won't have either for a few days based upon the state of the rest of the road and the surrounding environs. No doubt the portaloo will be arriving soon. No fun at all.

Maria headed back early for another trip into Solid Energy and I followed on later once we had shifted as much silt as our aching limbs could cope with for one day. I'm out of shape! Another dusty ride home, spotting and photographing a few images on the way.

Safe and Sound had hot running water and showering facilities - so Maria, Sarah and I headed round to use it. Clean at last!

So it was a relatively sweet smelling dinner-time on Thursday as we tucked into a double helping of Cray Fish that Matt had offered me earlier in the afternoon. They were ones he had brought back from Kaikoura last November and had been frozen in his freezer - but no power was slowly thawing everything out.

Discovered that the water supply was back on in Desmond St - apart from us - again. The mains pipe had ruptured again, in the same place as last time. Call in the plumber and I may not need to use the artesian well for a body-wash afterall!

6.3 Aftershock - 22nd February 2011

How bizarre - our Christmas present from Jack and Evelyn belated arrived on Sunday - Matt and Lou brought it around - Noel Leemings' had finally delivered the wind-up emergency radio (featuring spotlight and soft glow light) that had been ordered at the end of November. We joked that it had gone quiet recently - on the aftershock front - and that we normally only sat drinking tea and eating cake on our patio as a post-quake ritual. Then 48 hours later - BANG!

The day had started differently to that planned. I had arranged for an early bike ride over the Port Hills with Randall - a pal from the Source to Sea event. But it was raining so we cancelled at 7am. Actually, he had texted to say that the Gondola had reported their ride had ground to a halt and they needed him to go and fix it (he installed it). But the rain prevented me from taking to the hills that morning.

Instead I booked some flights for an Easter break in Australia - taking in Brisbane and Sydney on a whistle stop tour. I also made a few phone calls about possible jobs and then headed off into town to the CDC on Cashel Street to do some work for Business Mentors.

Chris was on a 'day off' from Wendy's - they are located just off Cathedral Square on Hereford Street. I left him logged on to the lap-top as I left for town. he talked about going to the gym later in the day - but then he does a lot of talking about going to the gym rather than actually going!!

Maria and Sarah had left at the same time - it was still raining at 8am and Sarah had asked for a lift in the car as Maria passed by her school on the way to 'Safe and Sound' (What a great place to be when an earthquake strikes - kind of reassuring don't you think?!)

Sarah was on a half day - I think that the teachers were on strike in the afternoon (I might be wrong about that, but there were definitely no lessons on the agenda). As the Boys High School were also off for a half day, the obvious thing to do was to head to Westfiled Mall to do some Girls High/Boys High 'opposite-sex spotting'!

So a pretty normal day...until about 10 to 1...and then all hell broke loose.

Sarah was sat in the Food Hall as the Mall started to shake around her. She grabbed her friend Molly and dived under a table. There was debris falling from the ceiling and a stampede for the door. But everyone got out OK. No major damage observed. A little shaken, Sarah and her friends headed back towards Boys High (there must have been some Boys with them!) - idea being they had a large sports field and it would be safe stading in the middle of that!!

Chris had still been on the lap-top when the house started shaking. Having spent the morning sitting around in his underwear, he decided he should now get dressed as he clearly would have to get out of the house! Apparently he was mid-dress when a large aftershock hit and he says he nearly jumped out of the bedroom window as his room was shaking so much!

By all accounts, Maria's place was safe and sound!

I had just eaten my lunch and had gone back to the desk where I was working on the 2nd floor of the CDC building on the corner of Cashel Street and Liverpool Street. I had experienced a few aftershooks back in January at the CDC and everyone was conscious of the windows imploding as they had done so during the Sept 4th Quake. We had also had a few conversations regarding the strongest part of the building - supposedly being the stairwell - and how you should head for that in the event of a Quake.

There was no warning. No rumble. Just a bang and everything started to shake. It was obvious within about half a second that this was not a 'normal aftershock'. Instinctively I turned my back on the windows and headed for the stairwell. I was conscious that others were heading off in other directions - where to I didn't know. But I was on a mission.

The shaking probably lasted around 10 seconds - maybe a bit longer - I can't really recall. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion - or maybe it was the fact that you couldn't move in a straight line as you were tossed from side to side, against walls and cupboards as you headed for wherever you wanted to be.

Anyway, I made it to the stairwell. I stood there on my own as the shaking subsided and then wondered where everyone else was! "Everyone get out" was shouted by someone in the main office. Good idea, I thought. And then I broke the golden rule. I headed back into the office and to my desk to grab my phone, ruck-sack (containing wallet), bike helmet and jacket. And an apple that I had brought for my lunch but not yet eaten - not sure why I grabbed that, but I did!

There was a cabinet tipped over and blocking the exit for a few of the office staff so I did my bit to help clear a way out for them and then we all headed down the stairs - quite calmly - and out onto Cashel Street. As we exited the building I noticed the building opposite with gaping cracks running down the walls and I then started to realise that maybe it wasn't just a minor tremor. Also, the air was full of dust - which I was later to realise was as a result of the CTV building that had collapsed just 200 yards away.

We gathered on the street outside the building - the road was split open and brown water was spewing all around us. I looked up at the surrounding buildings - all at least 4 stories high - the CDC cloacked in scaffolding from the Sept shake - and thought to myself that this was not a good place to be if another more powerful shake struck. I then noticed the top of the Grand Chancellor Hotel a little further down Cashel Street and noticed that one side had appeared to have sunk. Only the tallest building in town, a quarter or a mile away, looking like it was about to come down. I did not feel comfortable there at all!

It's a bit of a dilema for most. You find yourself in a bad situation. You want to get away. Your normal mode of transport is your car - but in this case it's in a car park which you can't get to - or are frightened to go to - so what do you do? Only option is to walk.....

Unless your bike is parked across the road from the CDC!

So I officially declared I was leaving and I was off.

I actually headed towards the Grand Chancellor for about 100 metres and then turned north up Manchester Street. I then realised just what a disaster we were facing!



All the shop fronts were down. Rubble was littering the streets and piled on top of cars. There were gangs of people tearing at the piles obviously trying to help free people. People were stood around looking helpless. Others were taking pictures or filming with their phones. I got to around Gloucester Street and stopped - partly because the road was blocked by rubble, but also because I wondered whether I should stop to help.

And then I started to worry about Maria and the kids. I rang Maria as I cycled. No reply. I rang home. No reply.

A text came through. I stopped cycling and checked the phone. It was from Sarah asking if I was OK - which meant she was OK. Thank God. Then one from Chris asking the same. Relief. Just Maria now and we were all OK, though I just couldn't get a message to send to her.

I could smell gas. So could others. There were calls to get out of the area quickly. I was at Armagh St and decided to take a left to head across town. As I approached New Regent St I had to negotiate a large hole in the road plus a rather large gap that had opened up between the tram tracks and the tarmac. There were compression breaks too that I had to 'hop over' and puddles of orange water that I had to steer around.



Victoria Park was full of people who had emptied from the likes of Farmers and the Copthorne. I headed over the Avon and over Durham St. The road was particularly bad around here - pretty flooded. Then there was another strong aftershock.

I still couldn't get a message to Maria - neither had I received one from her.

I got to Hagley Park - Armagh Bridge entrance. The Ellerslie Flower Show crowd were beating a hasty exit. As I cycled past, I could see that the area was awash with liquifaction. I headed across the Park, between Victoria and Albert Lakes - except there was no between - they had been joined by about 12 inches of flooding across the dividing cycle path - so I got a a bit wet, or at least my shoes did!

There were piles of silt all over the track and over the golf course - and by the time I had arrived home I had a fair covering over myself and the bike!

Chris greeted me at the bottom of the path with 'the house is f###ed'! I had visions of it being flattened but fortunately he was a little bit over the top with his summary of the situation. Yes, stuff was all over the place; glasses smashed, TV, chairs, bed-side cabinets toppled over, etc... but the fabric of the building was still OK.



Still no news from Maria though.

I sent Chris off to get Sarah from school - forgetting she wasn't there - and set to tidying up the mess in the house. Then my phone beeped and I receved a message from Maria asking if I was OK. 'I am now' I said to myself!

Chris returned home - sans Sarah. Molly's parents turned up, worrying where she was - hoping she was here with Sarah. She was, and when they turned up it was rather emotional for a minute of 2! And they were closely followed by Maria who had left her 'Safe and Sound' workplace to check out that we were all OK!

We were still experiencing quite strong aftershocks and we had a bit of a fright when our garden wall was brought down during one of them.



We set to cleaning up the mess in the house - particularly the kitchen - a nice mix of glass, pasta, bulgar wheat, olive oil and tomato passata all over the floor! No power. No water. But at least we were all OK.



Thank goodness we had an emergency radio....and a landlady with a good supply of champagne! Nicky arrived back at the Studio late afternoon - she had been just around the corner from me Downtown and had experienced death and destruction at close quarters - tending to a guy who had fallen from a 3rd floor apartment onto the road below.



Some friends from around the corner had called in - mainly to get away from their place which was teetering on the brink of destruction - and the bubbly was duely offered to all. So there we were, sitting drinking champagne on one side of the river Avon whilst on the other side, in Hagley Park, hundreds of homeless people were queuing up for a bed for the night in the previously mentioned Ellerslie Flower Show Marquee! I did feel slightly ill at ease, but I think that was mainly due to the bottle of fizz that I supplied not really being up to the standard of those served earlier!

Chris had appeared with four of his pals whose house had 'taken a beating' with plans to sleep on our floor. They had turned up with some food - pizzas - but unfortunately we had no means of cooking them. But then, just as we were about to hatch a cunning plan, the power came back on, around 9pm. So it was pizzas all round! Plus we could catch up on the news of the Quake on the TV - see what the rest of the world was being told. Decided then to let my bro' John know we were OK - no point in letting everyone back home worry unnecessarily!

So that is more or less my story of the Feb Quake - or at least the first 10 hours or so. I guess this one will run a bit. May be a pivotal point in our Antipodean adventure? Watch this space!

Must have been a rubbish Christmas to not get a blog?!

So the regularity of my postings is gradually diminishing. So am I so busy doing stuff and having a great time that I just can't find the time to blog - or is life so dull and boring that I have nothing to tell you about? Two extremes, neither of which is true. Probably somewhere in the middle is the truth. So what has been going on since the last blog? Crikey, December the 4th, that was a long time ago! So the training regime kicked in for forthcoming LA challenge just as the end of year BBQ and party schedule ramped up here in Chch. I did my best to be good, but reconciled myself to the fact that I did need some carbs at least to fuel the exercising. The events seemed to keep coming - PTA Xmas do, Simply Lean Xmas do, Fulton Hogan SQTE Dept party, Fulton Hogan Admin Division do, Maria's Works do, Chamber of Commerce, Business Mentors.....it was great! Chris also started his new job as Shift Supervisor in training at Wendys (Old Fashioned Hamburger) - and there was a friends and family opening night there too! Anything off the menu...gratis! Probably was the most calorific of all the pre-Xmas troughs if the truth be known. Their thick chocolate milk shakes (with extra whipped cream on top) are enough to clog anyone's arteries. Nice though! We also attended Sarah's School's Prizegiving Ceremony at the Town Hall. This was a really grand occassion - full of pomp and ceremony. It was on a different level to anything I had ever experienced back in Stockport or Derby. There was a great sense of tradition and occassion. Unfortunately, the week before Christmas saw me finish my contract with Fulton Hogan. A bit disappointed to tell you the truth. I think that there are still plenty of things that I could help them with given a bit more time. There were a few comments made before I actually finished that maybe we haven't seen the last of each other - so fingers crossed for the new year. So as of 18th December, I became a professional triathlete! The prize money now took on added significance...LOL! The Sunday before Christmas saw Maria and I head up to the Mud House Winery at Waiapra to see Blondie and The Pretenders in concert.

A great evening of entertainment indeed! A beautiful warm sunny evening and a blast down memory lane - I had forgotten just how many Pretenders' song I knew. We had been auctioning Brendan's campervan on Trade Me - at his request - and had been hoping that no-one would buy before Christmas - as it had featured as a key component of our Summer holiday plans! Bad move really - as it was sold on Christmas Eve! We spent a sunny Christmas Day on the beach at Taylor's Mistake with my 'training partner' - Rob Sherman - and his family before returning back to Desmond St for a evening of champagne, cray-fish and chocolate strawberries. Delicious.

And late night swimming!


Once the girls had had their Boxing Day Sale's fix - which actually included a 5.1 earthquake at 10am in the morning - we headed over to Akaroa for a few nights under canvas - taking Sarah's pal Molly with us for company.

Despite a rather claustrophobic pitch, noisey neighbours and some inclement weather on the second day (we spent most of it in a restaurant having a very long lunch with Matt & Lou) we did have a pleasant time of it! Maria's boss - Chops - has a bach over there and invited us around for a drink or two one evening (the wet one!) and then out on his motor boat for the afternoon the following day.

We also got to crew for his pal Rob in the evening Yacht Race around the harbour - a great experience. We didn't win, but didn't come last.

We definitely had the best post race buffet - cray-fish, salmon blinnies and fizz - consumed in a reasonalbe quantity aboard the boat as the sun gently set over the Bank's mountains. And once it did set, the temperature suddenly dropped by about 10 degrees - almost immediately. So off to Rob's bach overlooking the harbour with fab views of the environs. What a life these guys lead! We headed back to Christchurch for New Year festivities. Maria and I headed into town for a few drinks with Steve and Viv Frodsham whilst Sarah hosted a gang of her school pals at our place - for a pool party! We actually headed back home to see the new year in - plus to check that all was OK back at the ranch - and witnessed a mass pool-bombing by the girls at midnight! (Poor old Chris - he was at work serving burgers to late night revellers until 4 in the morning!). Maria had the week after New Year off work - most of Christchurch is on holiday for at least a week too - so there's barely no work to do unless you are in retail or hospitality! We spent the week chilling in and around Christchurch - no campervan, you see!



A few bike rides to Tai Tapu, a run up the Harry Ell track, a trip to the pictures with Sarah to watch the Young Fockers....and all sober....no booze for a week...how very 'un-kiwi' I hear you say! And then the holidays were over. Maria headed back to work and I started to look for work. I did find some quite quickly, TBH. Helping out at Business Mentors again. It's not the long term solution but will keep me out of the shops and pubs until I get something more finacially rewarding! So just as my swim times and run splits were starting to look impressive, LA pulled out of the event! All that training I had done - in vain?! He had a sore knee apparently. So I pulled out to. Anything you can do.....! Mid-January saw Mike Moran and his wife Dawn visit us, along with son Jack. We spent a pleasant afternoon touring the sights of Chch and hosted them chez-nous for a BBQ and a few cheeky ones (yes, back off the wagon by then!). They actually got to experience a big aftershock the following morning - a 5.0 shook the city from their beds at just after 6am. A few more during the day resulted in one of the shakiest days for a while. The BBQ is actually a recent purchase - we decided to host a few pals around here early in the new year and invested in a gas-powered model - so my days of charcoal-dirty fingers and waiting for the coals to glow before cooking are possibly behind me (just like a final-salary pension scheme!). So now I have the new toy, most food over the past few weeks has been BBQ'd!


Last week was a busy one in Chch. It was World Buskers Week plus the City hosted the World International-Para Championships.



Though we didn't make it to any of the athletics, we did go to see a few of the Buskers events - notably 'The Boy with Tape on his Face' at the Art Gallery. A great show. Despite not competing in the Roturua triathlon, I am continuing the train quite hard. Further more, I foolishly let the beer talk at one of my Saturday BBQ's - in the presence of witnesses - that I secretly wanted to do the Wanaka Ironman next January. I think Rob was a bit bevvied too and we now find ourselves 'committed' to the Christchurch Marathon in June, the Ashburton Half-Ironman in November and the previously mentioned Wanaka Challenge this time next year. One of these days I'll learn to keep my ideas to myself! Hope that's got you back up to speed. Just off to do a couple of laps of Hagley Park......not really....I'm actually going to fire up the BBQ....honest. It's been 35 degrees here today - absolutely sweltering. And today of all days I decided to take Maria on the 80km Long Bays cycle ride. Probably not the greatest of ideas. We did get round - eventually. It took a few coffee stops and a few walks up a few of the hills (not me, of course!). But hey, it was done. And now it's time to cook the meat to go with the Salad Nicoise that I have prepared and I guess we will swill it down with the fizz that I put in the fridge to chill about 3 hours ago. What a life these guys lead!