In the Christchurch quake. Richard.

---

We are now in Melbourne safe and well, the last week has been very difficult. it all started on the morning of february 22nd.
We had a list of simple jobs to do that morning ranging from arranging busses for our Malaysia trip, to buying a climbing rope and climbing shoes. We drove the hire car from our hostel in Somner,(about 16km from the city) and parked in a multi-storey carpark on the junction of lichfield street and colombo street.
We then walked down Colombo street and into one of the outdoor shops, called bivouac stores; for a qoute, we then went directly across the street in to another outdoor shop called mountain designs. We could not decide what climbing shoes to buy and we spent about 30 min in the back of the shop, suddenly there was the most horrible noise you could every imagine, a deafning roar and the ground was banging up and down so violently that our vision became blurry, like the blair witch movie with the 8mm camera shaking up and down.

The lights inside the building fell from the ceiling and a large cloud of concrete dust came flying in through the open doors, in panic we ran into the backroom/store cuboard but there was no way out, so we turned and ran outside, it was total carnage outside, car and shop alarms could be heard on every street. We then ran back into the shop to get our bag that had our passports in.
Once outside again we noticed more damage, it is strange how long it takes to actually aknowledge the disaster that was unfolding around us, water was spraying from a cracks in the road, another big vibration as a shop collaspsed close by sending other buildings crashing down around us.

A guy across the road screamed that someone was under the large concrete canopy that had colapsed onto the walkway in front of the shops, we ran over to help dig the person out, but when a large block was lifted off and the woman in her early forties was dragged out , it was clear she was already dead.
Another aftershock ripped through the city and everybody ran to the centre of the crossroads as buildings dropped like a pack of cards around us, filling the air with thick dust. The sport shop we had been in previously had completly collapsed, we felt another shake as we stood there wondering what to do next, it was another building collapsing. It was like being in a hollywood blockbuster. We both decided our best option was to go to the park close by the river. People where walking, crying and running around in disbelief as more aftershocks came and more buildings where damaged.

It seemed like an age before any emergency services arrived as most of the roads where blocked by people trying to flee the city. Bodies and the injured where being driven on the roof tops of cars, the main hospital in the centre was evacuated. After being in the park for around 20mins and making a couple of phone calls, we found out that the actual epi centre was close to Somner, where our hostel was.
We left the park to see if our high rise parking lot was still standing and to see if we could get access to the car for our gear. As we walked around it was clear that there was a lot of people dead or injured. A fire had broke out in one of the buildings and they where using a helicopter to try and put out the flames.

Gas and water was leaking from the damaged roads and we just wanted to get out of this area as soon as possible, it felt like we where sitting on a timebomb. We passed a car on a street that was covered from the front to the back with a massive concrete plate, the car horn was blaring away due to the damage, and the driver was dead inside.
Everywhere we looked was damaged, another concrete slab had landed on the side of a bus, completely flattening it, people where digging in vain.
During the earth quake we where lucky to be in a new building, every old building (1900s) on colombo street had lost the large concrete slab, or brickwork, that was used for decoration. The direct fall line for this arcitecture is either backwards onto the roof, or directly on to the pavement below.

As we walked away from the city it was clear that the largest building in Christchurch, the chancellor hotel, was in terminal condition, i dread to think the catastrophe that awaits if that building falls over, the shockwaves from that would bring down the rest of Christchurch city for sure.
Walking past every building felt like russian roulette. Some people where crying some where laughing, it all depends if you where in the wrong place at the wrong time, it could be a distance of 10 metres or 10 minutes, but we for certain lost one of our nine lives.

We walked all the way in the direction of somner not knowing what to expect, we had another massive aftershock that rocked the trucks along the road and almost sent us down onto our knees, but we where quite far out of the most dangerous, area as all the buildings around us where single storey.

The damage around was immese, bridges where destroyed, the road had opened up and swallowed a bus, water levels where waist deep and we had to climb through gardens and over walls to get to where we could possibly sleep or get some food.
Once we arrived in Somner it was not good there either, half of the cliff along the beach front had colapsed and littered the road with rock fall, one boulder the size of a bus had gone straight through one of the houses killing 2 inside.
We arrived at our hostel and we where welcomed to the smell of dust, the cliff behind had also collaspesd and wiped out the kitchen, but that did not really matter as everywhere was without power and water.

A rescue helicopter landed in the middle of the street to take away a dead body from the RSA club.
We where invited back to the owners house for a gas powered BBQ and some beers to calm our nerves. We heard a story from a swiss couple who where also in the city, telling about they had just left the cathedral and witnessed it collapse seconds later.

That night we had at least 20 after shocks. sleeping in a powerless hostel, with no running water and worrying if the cliff behind would collapse is difficult.

February 23rd 2011

The next day we decided our best plan, as stupid as it may seem, was to get back into the city and recover the car.
Our options where limited, our hostel was badly damaged, as was the over hanging cliff behind.
we had little food and very little water, as well as no working toilets. The actual disaster is only a small danger, disease and lack of water was also a serious concern.
If we got the car back we could look after ourselves, as we had no radio, and we had not been advised by any officials, the police we asked told us to leave the area, but how and where? A water truck came to the village for about 15minutes per day, we only had a 2 litre container, so waiting around was not an option.
We walked and noticed the army had set up a very loose cordon around the city, about a 5km radius, with tanks and jeeps. This was easy to get through as they seemed only set up to stop vehicles getting into the city, we got passed these easily by climbing over a few fences. We know this seemed a stupid dangerous thing to do but we honestly felt we had no choice, we where tourists, with no friends or family in the area. It had already been 2 days without water, electric and toilets, and o be honest it certainly did not look like it was going to get any better.
Once we had got through this we walked through the deserted city trying to avoid the police and locate our car lot.
On the junction of where our car was located and the exit to the car park, two cops stood chating, Ilona and i split up and she walked over to talk to them and act as a decoy, i ran around the back crawled through parked cars, then as the cops watched Ilona walk away, i ran as fast as possible across the street behind them and into the car lot. Key in the door and just as i was getting in the car we had another after shock, very scary when you have already witnessed so much death and destruction and then to be inside a concrete multi storey car park when all around is shaking.......
i drove out of the plastic tape and picked up Ilona from the side of the road, driving out past the army cordon and back to sumner. To pack our remaining clothes and bags, and leave the city to anywhere that had running water, the longer we waited the tighter the restrictions would be in the areas.
Little did we know what would happen the next day....................

---

Comments

[Inger A]

Hej igen ! Vad skönt att ni nu är i säkerhet och att allt gått bra. Det kunde ha gått värre. Jag har googlat på NZ nyheter och sett mycket hemska bilder. Tur att vi haft sms-kontakt hela tiden (nästan) annars hade vi varit sjuka av oro och fått kontakta Svenska Ambassaden. Mormor och Knut hälsar så jättegott och säger att de är så glada att ni är okey. När jag berättade för mormor att ni skulle ta er till flygplatsen utbrast hon "oh, vad roligt att de kommer hem!! " Jag fick ju förklara att ni nog inte är på väg till Sverige. Kramar från Inger

[Dave Anne and the Kids]

Flipping Heck
You ceretainly rocked the world the day you got engaged........No seriously flipping heck, glad all thigs are as good as can be. I don't get to watch the news so only pick up the fact through Jamies faceboook entry. Take care be safe, over and out......

[richard and ilona]

Jag uppskattar att ni tankt pa mig, jag forsoker hora av mig via telefon snart.