In February 2011, the largest city on the south island of New Zealand, which is also the country’s 2nd largest city, was rocked by a 6.3-magnitude earthquake causing over $40 billion in damage and killing 185 people.. The center of town was devastated, and the eastern suburbs experienced liquefaction. Now 2-1/2 years later recovery still looks very far away. Visiting after the Christchurch quake today was a surreal experience.
The cathedral in the square was long a symbol of Christchurch. Previous earthquakes had done some damage to the historic church, but the 2011 quake saw the complete loss of one whole side of the church, including its iconic bell tower. Today, it is surrounded by attractive fencing as it bears sober witness to the city’s destruction while the debate continues over whether to raze and rebuild or invest the multiple millions of dollars it would require for restoration.
Near the square several shops have been replaced with repurposed storage containers. A creative solution which is quicker than what many business owners have had to endure. Many buildings are still deemed risky or have been condemned. Reportedly, multiple people remain in limbo waiting for inspections to determine if they can reopen their business, if it will need renovation, or if the building needs to be demolished. And funding any of those options is going to be a big challenge.
An extremely large section of the city remains uninhabited and behind fences. It is surreal walking around a city that was once quite busy and now closely resembles a ghost town.
As we left Cathedral Square and the redevelopment center, we began to feel like we were strolling through a ghost town. Rarely any building was accessible. The streets were eerily silent. An occasional parking lot occupied the space cleared by the demolition of a building. Some buildings appeared safe but were clearly vacant, while others had only a single wall remaining, supported by a stack of shipping containers protecting the streets below from detritus.
Aside from decorated fencing, there have been several installations to help beautify the city. The sculptures, colorful bicycle parking areas, and other installations add some vibrancy to the otherwise austere environment.
Seeing the effects of the Christchurch quake and witnessing its aftermath was a fascinating exercise, but one that also left us quiet and slightly discomfited. If you come to the city during a visit, I suggest not only walking around just to explore but also visiting Quake City where you’ll be able to see a different side of the city, learn more about the disastrous earthquake, and the lives that have been greatly affected by New Zealand’s most powerful natural disaster.
Have you ever visited a place devastated by a natural or other disaster? What was it like?
February 11, 2014
Hi Talon
Your article was great to read for a non-residents perspective. I live in Christchurch and have experienced all the earthquakes. We actually had 4 large events from Sept. 2010 (7.1); February 2011 (6.3); June 2011 (6.4); December 2011 (6.0) and the thousands of aftershocks in between. After the September quake we were all amazed at the damage in the city and were all quite fascinated with what mother nature could do. The shaking was intense and we couldn’t stand up and the noise was deafening listening to the house shake violently. There were no deaths as it happened at 4.35am. However, just when the city and everyone was getting back to normality the February quake struck and even though the magnitude was lower the shaking was more violent. It was only 5kms deep and based in the Port Hills very close to the city, hence why it was so damaged.
It has certainly been a long road and we don’t get many aftershocks now so things are definitely settling down. Seeing the city like a ghost town is so surreal even when you live here. Progress is quite slow when you think of what Japan went through and how fast they cleared lots of areas.
I go in to the city and document a lot of the changes that have happened. It is coming up 3 years since the Feb quake and they say there will be at least another 6 years of uncertainty. The bright side is new buildings are slowly emerging and the pop up mall which has the containers is great.
Thanks again for writing a great article.
Helen 🙂
February 11, 2014
It was so surreal. I only wish you could all experience faster progression toward recovery. Another 6 years? Yikes!
January 27, 2014
We passed through the airport in mid 2011, and though we didn’t see a lot of the damage in the city there were several large cracks in the walls of the airport. I can imagine that this was only a tiny amount of the destruction, and it’s very saddening.
January 27, 2014
It was absolutely eerie in parts.
December 5, 2013
Very interesting and heartening to read visitors perspectives. I’ve lived in Christchurch all my 53 years and the last 3 have been challenging but fruitful. We lost our home on the east side of the city due to ground movement and liquefaction. We lived in a tent for 1 week, with friends for 2 months then rented a house for 2 years. It has taken two and a half years to settle our insurance claim. Whilst the shaking has pretty much stopped the bureaucratic nightmare goes on for many residents as they try to get their repairs or rebuilds progressed with insurance companies or EQC (Govt agency that covers the first $100k of earthquake damage). We have abandoned our section and purchased a home just outside the city.
I say the experience has been fruitful becuase human relationships have been strengthened through closer camaraderie with neighbours and friends. We in Christchurch have discovered or had it reinforced that people are far more important than things. Home is where your family is-not a structure.
Talon I admire what you have done with your son. Travel is possibly the best education anyone can experience.
December 6, 2013
Wow! Thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts. I imagine it has to be hard to constantly see the effects in the city, but I love that other things have been strengthened. That’s the small shard of beauty that sometimes comes from tragedy.
I agree it is the best education. I don’t always know how much gets absorbed, but I’ve definitely seen things in him over the last few years that tell me this was the best choice for sure.
October 2, 2013
We visited Crch a couple of weeks ago. It’s hard to believe that this could happen to a city in the twenty-first century. Stay strong Christchurch
December 6, 2013
I can’t even imagine being there during the quake. I’ve been in a huge one before, but we were in a very rural area so I only had to deal with the actual shaking.
August 27, 2013
“Quiet and discomfited,” indeed!! Truly frightening!
August 27, 2013
I can only imagine what it must’ve been like for the people who were there for it.
August 26, 2013
It’s incredible to think that there’s still a long way to go before the city is fully returned to the where it should be and where it was before the earthquake, but this article and others I’ve read about the determination of the locals to live life to full and make the most of their opportunities warms my heart.
I love to see the things that people have done with the containers and have seen many interesting ideas that have come from such a tragedy.
August 27, 2013
I was a bit surprised we didn’t see more of the containers being used for shops and things. They were quite impressive renovations.
August 26, 2013
Seeing your photos of Christchurch make me grateful for the things I have and the place I call home. I experience a tiny earthquake a couple of years ago and it was very unsettling. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to go through an earthquake of Christchurch’s magnitude.
August 27, 2013
It’s one of those things that just goes against Nature. The ground is supposed to be steady.
August 24, 2013
I was in LA after the big earthquake in 1996? Nothing like this though. It seems surreal.
August 24, 2013
I was in the high desert during the 7.2 quake, but since we were rural we didn’t see near the damage that Christchurch had. I think we had 2 deaths and only a few buildings were condemned.
August 24, 2013
So sad — I had assumed it was all rebuilt by now!
August 24, 2013
I was very surprised to see just how much has not changed. I didn’t expect 100% renewal, but it really seems like all that has been accomplished is demolition of a few buildings.
August 24, 2013
This reminds me a lot of the last tornado I experienced (never lived through an earthquake, and though Spain gets them, they’re rarely big) – it was so sobering to walk through the damage the following morning.
August 24, 2013
Yes, it’s always amazing to see how much force Nature truly can muster.
August 23, 2013
Oh man, these photos are really affecting. It must have been even harder to walk through Christchurch in person. …I’ve lived in Los Angeles for 10 years and even though there are earthquakes according to seisometers, I’ve only felt one this whole time.
August 23, 2013
It’s definitely one thing to walk among the ruins, but quite another to hear and see the ghost town nature of a once fairly thriving city. Quite surreal and quieting.
August 22, 2013
I can’t believe this was just a recent episode. Living in Antigua, where there are ruins from hundreds of years ago due to these type of earthquakes, it must have been horrific to walk through a modern day one.
August 23, 2013
Most definitely! Especially for people who were in the areas that experienced liquefaction.
August 22, 2013
I visited Christchurch before the earthquake by several years so I was especially curious to see how the city was affected afterward. Interesting to hear about the Quake City museum.
August 23, 2013
I’ve seen some of the prequake photos. It’s really remarkable how much damage was sustained.
August 21, 2013
I can’t even imagine, to be honest. Natural disasters are so hard to overcome.
August 23, 2013
They certainly are!
August 21, 2013
I was in a big earthquake when I lived in Tokyo. Though It seemed to last forever, it was about a minute long, without the aftershocks. Your post is sobering — but oddly uplifting.
August 23, 2013
Yes, I lived through one that was 100 times stronger than this one, and it was scary as hell. Our aftershocks were bigger than this one, but we were in a very rural, very low population area. I can’t imagine being here watching hillsides liquify and buildings tumble onto the street.
August 20, 2013
I lived through this and it was horrible. It doesn’t feel like my home anymore.
August 20, 2013
I was in a much stronger quake, but we were very rural so didn’t have near the damage. I can only imagine how horrid that must’ve been.