Lyttleton bore the brunt of the second, more destructive of the two earthquakes. We took a bit of a drive around and were shocked at the damage. The port is still functioning but frequent earthquakes continue to hamper repair efforts.
The fog was still hanging around when we reached Sumner. It didn't seem to worry the local surfers.
One of the worst hit areas was Redcliffs. The second quake literally shook the face off the cliffs. The clifftop mansions slid down the cliff and into the school at the bottom (below). Many perished including students. The houses left standing at the top of the hill are now out of bounds as it isn't even safe enough for the owners to retrieve their possessions. This one of many very sad stories in the shaky city.
To avoid rock slides crashing into passing traffic, shipping containers full of concrete have been placed as a barrier along Main Road. It's not pretty but very effective.
One of the good news stories is the Restart Mall in the CBD. The city centre was hit hard during both earthquakes and the demolition and re-build process is constant and extensive. In order to stop retailers going out of business (and Christchurch residents the opportunity to shop), shops have been set up in brightly coloured shipping containers that can be easily moved as the demolition & re-build moves around the city. It seems to work really well and is a testament to the resilience of the community.
Oddly, the tram lines through the mall survived both quakes relatively unscathed. This section was a recent extension to the tourist route and designed to the latest earthquake ratings so it isn't necessarily surprising.
That's for New Zealand until next time.........
