Aftershocks continue to rattle Canterbury following a devasting magnitude 7.1 earthquake which hit the region about 4.35am on Saturday.
Almost 300 aftershocks have shaken Christchurch in the past five days, and geologists say they may continue for weeks.
Christchurch resident Karyn Mr O'Leary an initial adrenaline rush that had carried Christchurch residents for the first few days was being replaced by exhaustion, she said.
"A lot of people are getting tired. We try to go to sleep and there's a shake at 12.30pm, then 3am, then 8am, or whatever it was. It just doesn't stop."
Maps show aftershocks, location of services
The Christchurch Quake Map aims to present a time-lapse visualisation of the earthquake and its aftershocks, primarily to help those outside the affected area understand what people in Canterbury are experiencing.
It plots earthquake data from GeoNet on a map, with the size of the circle denoting the magnitude (the higher the magnitude, the larger the circle) and the colour showing the focal depth.
Mapquake aims to provide people affected by the qauke with information on the location of services such as portaloos, water filling stations, welfare centres and wi-fi hot spots. It also marks some road closures, food outlets and buildings earmarked for demolition.
• Curfew to remain in place
Waimakariri's overnight curfew will remain in place until at least Monday, Civil Defence controller Bruce Thompson said today.
Waimakariri District Council staff were continuing to assess buildings and roads in Kaiapoi and the nearby communities of Pines Beach and Kairaki following Saturday's 7.1 magnitude quake.
Contractors and volunteers were clearing tonnes of silt and debris from properties and streets, and the town centre opened for the first time since the quake today.
Nearly 400 Kaiapoi and Pines Beach/Kairaki homes were under restricted access or were considered unsafe, while 97 had been red-stickered, which meant residents had to leave them as they were uninhabitable.
Water had largely been restored to the area but residents must still boil it before using it. However, the sewerage scheme required major repairs.
The Waimakariri district's state of emergency would remain in place until at least next Wednesday.
• Quake causes groundwater changes
Saturday's massive earthquake has resulted in changes to the groundwater beneath the Canterbury Plains, Environment Canterbury says.
"New springs have been observed, wells have shown marked increases in water level, spring-fed streams such as the Halswell River have risen markedly and increased turbidity (cloudiness) has been seen in some wells," spokesman Dr Tim Davie said.
"It is well known by scientists that earthquakes can, and frequently do, induce a response in groundwater that can be observed up to several hundred kilometres from the earthquake epicentre."
Scientists from GNS Science and Environment Canterbury were measuring the changes to get a better idea of what was permanent.
• Prisoner evacuations continue
Almost 650 prisoners will have been evacuated from Christchurch men's and women's prisons by late tomorrow, the Corrections Department says.
Prisoners had been moved on air force planes, and police had assisted with transfers between airports and prisons.
It was not known how long prisoners would be housed outside of Christchurch, spokesman Lance Alexander said.
"We are not willing to add further pressure to emergency services in Christchurch by placing prisoners back in Christchurch withoutassurance that the sites are safe and secure."
The lower security units at Christchurch Men's Prison remained functional and there was safe and secure capacity to manage about 360 prisoners there. Rolleston Prison was operating normally.
All prisoners from Christchurch Women's Prison have been temporarily moved to Auckland Region Women's Corrections Facility (127 total).
Christchurch Men's Prison inmates have gone to Otago (87), Spring Hill (122), Waikeria (60), Rimutaka (185) and Tongariro/Rangipo (62).
• Limited impact on banks, insurers
The magnitude 7.1 earthquake in Christchurch on Saturday will not rock banks in New Zealand, Moody's Investors Service says.
The credit rating company said that the damage costs resulting from the earthquake would have only limited negative implications for insurers and banks in New Zealand.
"Due to very conservative reinsurance arrangements, the expected losses retained by general insurers will be minimal," said Moody's analyst Wing Chew.
Most of the losses will be covered by the Earthquake Commission natural disaster fund, which has been in existence for over 60 years.
On average 10 percent of banks' loan portfolios are in Christchurch.
"In this respect, the immediate impact will be a rise in delinquency rates due to disruptions to business and as some individual borrowers face unemployment, or are forced to take unpaid leave," said Moody's analyst Marina Ip.
• Volunteers encouraged to come forward
People wanting to help clean-up following Canterbury's earthquake should contact the Waimakariri District Council in Rangiora.
Waimakariri Civil Defence controller Bruce Thompson said details would be taken, including what skills people had and when they were available.
"We are going to need volunteers for weeks to come so even if people are not needed immediately, we will contact them when there is a need," Mr Thompson said.
• Tertiary institutions open from next week
Most of Canterbury's tertiary institutions will start reopening from Monday, Tertiary Education Minister Stephen Joyce says.
Mr Joyce met with managers of the institutions today and said there had been minimal permanent damage.
Tertiary providers in Canterbury will reopen as follows:
- Canterbury University to staff on Monday and students Wednesday, with classes resuming September 20;
- CPIT and Lincoln to staff and students on Monday;
- Te Wananga o Aotearoa's Manchester Street campus will remain closed until further notice, but classes will resume at the Moorhouse Avenue campus on Monday.
• Cordons to be lifted
The main cordons in central Christchurch will be lifted early tomorrow, aftershocks permitting, Mayor Bob Parker says.
There will be partial closures in some streets for safety reasons, but this would be minor, Mr Parker told a media briefing.
The lifting of the cordons at 5am depends on there being no major aftershocks, he said.
• Elections to proceed as planned
Local body elections will proceed in Canterbury, local electoral officers in Christchurch City, Waimakariri District, Selwyn District and the Canterbury District Health Board have confirmed today.
Voting papers will be issued between 17 and 22 September.
For inquiries about the elections ring the elections help line, (toll free) 0508 666 001.
If anyone does not receive their voting papers during that time, or any residents who will not be at their usual address during that time should contact the helpline.
Special voting will be available from council offices and details will be provided in due course.
• Respite care centre established
A small temporary respite care facility for older or disabled people has been established by the Canterbury District Health Board.
People can be referred to the facility, based at Princess Margaret Hospital, through their general practitioners, the DHB said.
"We are working with the aged residential care providers to best allocate respite care in this unit or elsewhere," DHB director of allied health Stella Ward said.
"We want people who require some nursing care, but are relatively independent and mobile, to have somewhere to go for a short time."
The unit has 20 beds and patients can stay up to seven nights.
In the eastern suburbs of Christchurch, 3000 homes are being visited to see if there were vulnerable or frail elderly people who might need care and support.
• Special needs school burgled
The burglary of a special needs school in quake-ravaged Christchurch has disgusted its board of trustees chairwoman, who says it is an added blow to pupils already distraught after Saturday's earthquake.
Ferndale School has about 100 pupils aged from five to 21, with disabilities from severe physical to severe intellectual.
At least $10,000 of equipment had been stolen, including digital video cameras and laptops.
"They're not just the el-cheapo ones because with the assessments of our pupils we need to make sure that everything is top rate, so they're at the more expensive end," chairwoman Jacki Morris said. "It's one thing we didn't need."
She had a question for the burglars: "How could you do this to a special needs school, to the most vulnerable in society?
The school would be closed until at least Wednesday.
• 1800 damaged buildings assessed
Christchurch City Council staff, along with an additional 60 building inspectors from around the country, started evaluating buildings in the city this morning and checking on the welfare of residents.
The evaluations are expected to take approximately 10 minutes for each home, and structural engineering expertise is available if required.
Council building inspectors started in Brooklands yesterday and as of noon today 368 homes had been assessed.
A total of 1798 commercial buildings assessments have been undertaken in the central business district and on arterial routes around the city.
Resources are stretched and staff are only dealing with properties which pose an immediate danger to people or other property. Property owners will need to seek independent building advice for matters not posing immediate danger.
• Youthline still operating
Youth advice service Youthline says Christchurch young people can still make use of its services, despite its local centre being closed because of Saturday's earthquake, thanks to a national network of phone and text counsellors.
"We want young people to know that Youthline is here for them. As families deal with the aftermath of the earthquake and practical considerations, young people may feel the need to be connected," Youthline national spokesman Stephen Bell said.
While the Christchurch centre is closed calls and texts from young people are being routed to counsellors at other offices around the country.
The organisation's helpline and text services have received additional contact from people within the Christchurch area anxious about their situation.
• Earthquake claims continue to rise
By this morning the Earthquake Commission had received nearly 34,000 claims. It is expected there will be upwards of 100,000 claims lodged. EQC is deploying resources to the region to conduct the assessment process.
Housing New Zealand is working closely with the Christchurch City Council to provide a joint response to medium term housing needs.
Building inspections are continuing with a regional request for additional building inspectors. Over 80 inspectors have been offered so far.
• Doctors advised to check vaccine supplies
Canterbury doctors' surgeries should check their vaccine supplies as they may have been affected by power cuts following Saturday's earthquake.
Pegasus Health has set up a vaccine helpline, (03) 3539894, and said practices should download data from their vaccine fridges, New Zealand Doctor newspaper reported.
Canterbury immunisation co-ordinator Ann Fraser, who is manning the helpline, said vaccine supplies did not seem to have been damaged.
"Live vaccines and heat-sensitive vaccines are not adversely affected unless they are exposed to temperatures above 26°C for more than 24 hours," Ms Fraser said.
"According to the helpline calls taken so far, no vaccine fridges have been without power for more than 10 hours and the temperatures rose no higher than 16°C."
• Rural recovery group established
A rural recovery organisation has been set up to deal with problems arising in the Canterbury farming sector as a result of Saturday's 7.1 magnitude earthquake.
Agriculture Minister David Carter said today that the great unknown for the farmers was the extent of damage to irrigation.
"What we need to do now that the power's on now is slowly test those wells and see whether the aquifers have moved. We then need to check the damage that occurs to pumps, to wells, and to underground main lines," Mr Carter said.
Mr Carter said it was inappropriate for him to guess what the level of damage might be.
The advice to farmers was not to start pumps again unless there was an engineer standing beside them who could shut them down again quickly if there was a problem, Mr Carter said.
• World Cup tickets being set aside
Some Rugby World Cup ticket sales for matches in Christchurch are being delayed to allow Canterbury residents time to focus on recovering from Saturday's earthquake.
Following on from the sale of multiple ticket packages for the World Cup, individual match tickets for the tournament go on sale tomorrow,
However, some tickets for matches at Christchurch - for which the stadium has been given the all clear by structural engineers - are being held back.
Hobbs told a gathering in Auckland marking one year to the day that the World Cup starts that the hearts of the rugby community went out to the Canterbury people and he was confident the region would do a great job for next year's tournament.
"We've remained in contact with the regional co-ordination group in Christchurch this week. At this stage there is nothing to suggest the city will not be able to play a full part in hosting this event," he said.
• Motorists asked to slow down
Motorists have been asked totravel slowly in residential areas that have been hardest hit by the earthquakes of the past five days.
Fast moving vehicles are creating vibrations.
• All Blacks to front quake trauma campaign
Four of Canterbury's rugby All Blacks, including captain Richie McCaw, have been enlisted for a campaign advertising where those traumatised by the earthquake can get help.
McCaw, Brad Thorn, Kieran Read and Corey Flynn, who are all in Sydney preparing for New Zealand's Tri-Nations test against Australia on Saturday, had agreed to Health Minister Tony Ryall's request to help out with the campaign, the minister in charge of the earthquake recovery, Gerry Brownlee, told media today.
They would be involved in an ad campaign to tell people who are suffering from trauma in the aftermath of the earthquake there is a phone number they can call and people who can help them.
• Two schools reopen
Southbridge children were among the first back to school today since the Canterbury earthquake, and first up they had an earthquake drill.
Southbridge School, about 45km southwest of Christchurch, was one of only two of 165 Canterbury state schools opened for a normal school day. The other was Oxford Area School, in north Canterbury, the Education Ministry said.
Principal Peter Verstappen said there was no structural or physical damage, the school's sewage and water systems were intact and no clean-up was needed.
The school had been checked by the ministry, local builders and engineers.
"We felt it would be good for our children and staff to get back to normal, pick up and move on," Mr Verstappen said. "We kept it low-key, every class had an earthquake drill."
• Sewage repairs come first: Joyce
Sewerage systems will have to be fully restored before reconstruction work can begin on Canterbury roads, Transport Minister Steven Joyce says.
Mr Joyce is in Christchurch today to look at the damage caused by Saturday's quake, and how the repair job was coming along.
He said it getting things back to normal would be a big job, and it was too soon to talk about a timeframe.
"The first thing is to get the roads serviceable again so people can have access again," he said.
"The issue of actually reconstructing the roads will be secondary behind services such as sewerage reticulation, which is really important."
• $7.5m for Canterbury communities
Quake-hit Canterbury communities will be able to draw on a special $7.5 million fund announced today.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett said the Community Response Fund would help social service providers in Canterbury.
"Canterbury's community organisations are doing a great job in incredibly difficult circumstances. But they can only do so much with the resources they have," Ms Bennett said.
"We want to ensure that these groups can continue to provide vital social services and cope with increased demand."
The fund would provide one-off grants of between $5000 and $10,000 to community-based social services in the region.
Funding could be extended to new providers as long as they are earthquake-related and focused on the well-being of the community.
• Waimakariri River contaminated
The current emergency situation has led to the Waimakariri River becoming contaminated in its lower reaches, downstream of McLeans Island.
People have been advised not to drink the water from the river; not collect fish or shellfish from the river or river mouth, including whitebait; and to avoid contact with water from the lower reaches of the river.
In general, the public are advised to avoid contact with any river water and sea water at this time, owing to possible contamination arising after Saturday's earthquake and subsequent aftershocks.
• 200 remain without power
Power is expected to be restored to all city residents within the next two days.
Orion said in a statement about 200 people remained without electricity, and underground cables in urban areas were taking some time to repair.
In rural areas, there were some isolated customers at the end of long lines who are also still without power.
The company was starting to stand down crews that had been working since Saturday, allowing them some rest so they could respond to any events during the weekend.
• Lifts shut down
All lifts which are currently shut down will remain out of service until at least the end of the week, when the situation will be reassessed.
This excludes essential services such as hospitals and the airport.
The Emergency Operations Centre advised people to avoid using lifts until the situation stabilises and the after shocks recede.
• Extra glaziers head to Christchurch
A glazing company has brought in staff from all over the country to help it replace shattered glass.
Staff would now begin the "massive task" of replacing windows destroyed by Saturday's magnitude 7.1 quake, said Smith and Smith commercial director Julia Dol.
"We are replacing broken windows but also boarding up a lot of homes and businesses to make them temporarily secure. We are available 24/7 and have received a massive volume on calls for help," she said.
Smith and Smith started work just four hours after the quake struck, she added.
• Serious damage to homes in Kaiapoi
Almost four hundred homes in Kaiapoi and Pines Beach/Kairaki are now under restricted access or are considered unsafe, for structural or sanitary reasons.
That's a little under a quarter of the 1843 residential properties so far assessed.
97 residential properties have been red stickered requiring residents to leave.
274 have issues that are not are not considered serious enough to pose a health or safety issue
55 commercial premises are also either under restrictions or unsafe.
Waimakariri Civil Defence Controller, David Ayers, says affected residents and business owners should have made contact or be making contact with the Earthquake Commission and their own insurance companies.
• Riccarton Rd cordons
Cordons are in place on one of Christchurch's busiest roads after two buildings were declared unsafe.
Police today set up cordons at several intersections of Riccarton Rd and asked the public to avoid the area.
One building was to be demolished, while the other would have its facade removed.
Cordons were likely to be in place for most of the afternoon.
• Chapel torn down
A historic Anglican chapel damaged in Canterbury's 7.1 magnitude earthquake was hastily deconsecrated before being torn down.
The chapel, at Christchurch's Churchill Court aged care facility, suffered irreparable damage in Saturday's devastating quake.
Bishop Victoria Matthews said she had almost no warning that the chapel had to be demolished.
"So instead of wearing her episcopal robes as she pronounced the final, formal, poignant prayer of deconsecration, she was wearing a yellow hard hat and a raincoat," the anglicantaonga website reported.
Bishop Matthews was on a pastoral visit to the resthome when a structural engineer declared the chapel a severe hazard.
As the excavator waited, all the religious fittings - including robes, chalices and patens, altar rail, and commemorative plaques - were quickly removed.
The church was built more than 100 years ago as part of St Saviour's orphanage.
• Financial advice for quake victims
Cash-strapped Canterbury earthquake victims may be able to get help managing their bills, says the Ministry of Consumer Affairs.
The ministry is advising people to seek help from their lenders if they were finding it difficult to keep up with debt repayments.
It says under the hardship provisions of the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act people can apply to their lenders to reduce or postpone credit payments, or extend the term of their mortgage.
However, it warns such measures should only be short-term and could increase people's overall debt.
People can apply to the Disputes Tribunal for an order to vary the contract if a lender refuses to comply.
• Saturday postal delivery suspended
New Zealand Post postal services in Canterbury have been suspended on Saturday to give staff a break, following last weekend's massive quake.
NZ Post chief executive Brian Roche said posties, rural delivery and box sorting employees and contractors had done a tremendous job to keep the mail system working since the quake.
"However, the effects of stress and fatigue can't be ignored and we have decided to give some of our people a well deserved breather," he said.
The temporary suspension of services on Saturday meant there would be no postal, PO Box and rural mail deliveries in Christchurch and related rural areas which had been affected by the quake.
PostShops and PostCentres would be open as usual on Saturday, apart from those currently closed due to safety and access issues.
• Quake advice causes concern
"Misleading" advice about what to do in an earthquake should be ignored, says the Ministry of Civil Defence.
It warned today that an email, known as the 'triangle of life' from a "discredited source" overseas, was being circulated in New Zealand.
The email discouraged people from taking conventional advice to 'drop cover and hold' under doorways or furniture.
"With the continuing aftershocks in the Canterbury region it is especially important the drop cover and hold advice continues to be followed," Civil Defence director John Hamilton said.
Civil Defence had received numerous queries about the "misleading advice", which included the "dangerous statement" that people who took cover under objects such as desks or cars, would be crushed, he said.
Mr Hamilton said the drill to drop and take cover was still the best advice to keep safe when a quake struck.
• 80 jobs lost at supermarket
More than 80 people have lost their jobs after a North Canterbury supermarket was found to have suffered irreparable damage in Saturday's 7.1 magnitude earthquake.
New World Kaiapoi will take at least a year to rebuild, leaving 34 full-time and 52 part-time staff without work.
• Bus services resume
Bus services have resumed in Christchurch after Saturday's 7.1 earthquake but some routes remain out of action, Civil Defence says.
It said that services would run to a normal weekday timetable.
A decision would be made at midday on reopening the Bus Exchange in the central city closed since the massive quake.
Civil Defence said Victoria Street was closed between Salisbury Street and Bealey Avenue and diversions were in place.
The two bus routes still out of action were the 51 New Brighton to Tower Junction and the 480 bus to Kainga.
