> Somebody overestimates the U.S. media.
(Sad Grin...) fair enough. These days I watch al Jazeera for credible news (it is a sad day when the Enemy has better news sources than the Good Guys do.) So I may have made an assumption.
OK, the guts of it is this: at just after 13h00 on Tuesday local time, a fairly large earthquake hit Christchurch again. It was not quite as strong on the Richter scale as the September 4 quake — but it was shallower (5 kms as opposed to 10 kms) so it caused unbelievable damage.
The epicenter was the Port of Lyttleton, which is a small town nearby.
The Christchurch CBD was flattened. I have seen aerial photos of Christchurch: it looks like the CBD received a direct hit, WW-II style, from a Lancaster bombing raid.
Christchurch’s eponymous Cathedral has lost its spire. Several hi-rise buildings have been munched. The Canterbury Television Building has been completely destroyed: there are no further survivors expected to emerge from that rubble. The PGG Building has collapsed into itself like a cheap camera: some people were rescued but many were crushed. A major hotel nearby the CTV building is expected to topple into the rubble heap — making ongoing rescue efforts exceedingly perilous.
The CBD itself is under police cordon: anybody found there without official excuse will be arrested. Rightly so — they are handing out “official excuse” very sparingly, and only to properly qualified emergency response staff.
Liquefaction has been a major issue: that is when the earth and groundwater shakes itself into a nasty, muddy muck. As with the previous September 4 earthquake, this is an issue in and near the otherwise-picturesque Avon River.
The Hospital is — so far — unaffected and operational. However, casualties are being sent all over NZ because the volume of injuries is so high.
95 confirmed dead, with the death toll climbing.
A strong, shallow earthquake combined with liquefaction is a serious situation. This Californian knows well, and I have been following the story closely. The collapsed cathedral spire told the tale, as did the other unreinforced masonry buildings. I was sad to see the cathedral, and have been very sad to hear about the mounting death toll. I didn’t make it to Christchurch when I was down in NZ unfortunately, but know what a wonderful people Kiwis are. Our prayers to all in NZ!
Welcome “home” DieHard. We have missed you. It’s good to see you, but not under these circumstances. Many prayers for Christchurch and for the families of all those who have been killed or are missing. It truly is horrific, and I especially pray that they find more survivors. Don’t be gone so long next time. God bless.