Update Christchurch earthquake

This is man is representing one of the dean brothers sitting in one of the oldest buildings in Canterbury, Deans Cottage, build in 1843. He didn't live to see the finishing state of the beautiful Riccarton house he was building next to it. His wife Jane and her son John moved to Riccarton House in 1854. Riccarton house is one of Christchurch beautiful heritage buildings which is damaged. The damage is mostly internal but the future of the building is uncertain. Mr Dean couldn't foresee that what he and so many others had build up to become Christchurch could be destroyed in such a short matter of time.

Heritage buildings in the central city are all going to be bulldozed, without any consultation :(, except for Christchurch Cathedral, the Catholic Basilica, the Provincial Chambers and the Arts Centre. The demolishing of the city has already started and there is a lot of speculation about how long the central city remains closed. Some think it will be closed up till Christmas but the rebuilding is going to take  years and the cost will be around the 15 billion.

Mr dean in the above picture is lucky his little cottage is still standing,  but he is also lucky that he is just a doll who doesn't need to drink water and go to the toilet. Basic sanitary is an enormous problem in the worst hit areas. There are not enough chemical toilets or porterloo's and the ones which are there are overflowing.

Mr Dean is only pushed aside a little which is remarkable too. The PGA of the 22 February earthquake was in the range from 1.8 to 2.2. PGA means Peak Ground Acceleration and is a measurement of how hard the earth shakes.  2.2 was measured at Heathcote Valley school and is the highest measurement ever recorded in NZ and one the the highest in the world.

Mr Dean also isn't shaken emotionally like all of us are, as we watch our every step and have an antenna for every rumble and shake. The best thing would be to get into routine again but many have no jobs to return to and some children have no school to go to. Luckily 26 schools are starting this week, most after doing some clean up and making arrangements for clean water for example. A further 55 schools will follow soon as they have been given the green light that the buildings are safe. 34 schools are damaged and repairs need to be done. Some schools will be sharing buildings with part of the kids going in the morning and part in the afternoon.

Our kids school was in the central city so they can't return .The school had been offered a relocation but this was withdrawn and the location given to another school.  With friends moved away and no school to go to the life of our teenagers has changed dramatically. They are healthy though and have a roof to live under and material things don't matter at all anymore. We have each other. (Not my teens words ;) )