thursday since the saturday morning quake and after shocks approx 18 to 30 a day still happening.
each of these would be the same as we would have experienced approx every 5 years.
wednesday morning was a 5.5 and a rude awakening and although i never scare my nerves are now on edge.
even any movement is suspect such as wife turning over in bed will set me wide awake.
hence at 4 am i am typing this.
no damage to our house but those that have had substantial damage will be even worse off than us.
some families have shifted their beds to sleep together under the kitchen table.
schools are closed and state of emergency is still in place.
still sinking in that this is the most damaging quake since1931 and no deaths just a lot of shit scared people.
Structural engineering professor John Mander, originally from Christchurch but now of Texas A&M University, said that of "any place in the world this [Christchurch] would probably be the best prepared".
Its city council had started upgrading programmes for earthquake-prone buildings in the 1970s and damage could largely be attributed to "historic non-engineered construction", he said.
"That is, construction built by convention was conforming to building codes of the day, but these have historically not had any earthquake resistance provisions."
But Canterbury had better building codes - New Zealand learning from historic quakes such as the 7.8 magnitude shake that hit Napier in 1931.
Modern homes were generally timber-framed and flexed and absorbed earthquake energy, and commercial buildings were generally constructed with isolated foundations.
"New Zealand is now a world leader in earthquake engineering," wrote Mr Dykstra. Haiti, as one of the poorest countries in the world, did not benefit from stringent building codes.
"Construction practices are substandard and earthquake-proof buildings are few," he said.
in haiti
An estimated 250,000 homes were destroyed or severely damaged. About 230,000 people died.
But lastly, there was luck. "If the Canterbury earthquake had occurred at 4.53pm, as it did in Haiti, the number of deaths and serious injuries would be much higher."
these pics show the nature of the disaster and the atitude of the people
SMASH
here a valuable crystal chandaler was not able to be safely removed before demolition.
GRAB
so the kindly giant hand of the demolishing machine gently plucked the valued object to the gratefull owners
DELIVER
a new subdivision did the right thing and compacted the ground underneth the report below
------------------------------------
n 2005 the firm was asked to identify the liquefaction risks and advise on the work that needed to be done to minimise the liquefaction damage. Its work identified the risk of "severe lateral spreading" coming from the lake being excavated at the site. The assessment assumed an earthquake very similar to what was experienced on September 4.
To limit such spreading, the firm recommended vibro- compaction of all the material around the lake and under the township.
Charlie Price, the firm's principal geotechnical engineer, says the compaction involves putting a poker-like device into the ground to "densify" the sand. The hole left in the ground is then backfilled with sand or gravel.
The result was the land around the lake and under the township held firm in the earthquake.
Bob Robertson, managing director of Pegasus developer Infinity Investment Group, says the company spent about $20 million on the work.
Most of the site was also extensively "vibro-rolled" which compacts the soil and makes it better able to bear buildings, he says.
Robertson believes sophisticated drainage work also protected the site.
He believes the same methods can be used to stabilise land affected by liquefaction in the shake.
Hope then for homeless Christchurch residents. As with most things, cost will be the final determinant.
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