Second strong earthquake shakes Christchurch
A strong earthquake has rattled the New Zealand city of Christchurch, causing panic among residents.
By Paul Chapman in Wellington
Published: 7:00AM BST 19 Oct 2010
A man walks in a large crack caused by the earthquake in Kaiapoi near Christchurch, New Zealand Photo: AP
The 5.0 magnitude shake was the most powerful the city has felt since the 7.0 quake on September 4 that wrecked thousands of buildings and tore rifts through farmland and roads.
The shallow quake was among almost 2,000 aftershocks that have frazzled nerves in the South Island's biggest city, but geologists said the effect was magnified because it was centred only six miles to the southwest of Christchurch. Sara Page, a geologist with the government-run Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, said: "That would be the biggest, closest one we've had for a while."
Panicked workers in the city centre and some residents fled from buildings and gathered in open spaces, and a shopping mall in the suburb of Riccarton was evacuated as a precaution. Fiona Fidow, who has a shop in the mall, said: "Quite a few people are crying and hysterical. There are a lot of frightened people." One woman described the quake as "absolutely terrifying".
Some of the scariest moments were experienced by two building workers in a basket suspended from a tall crane when the quake struck. The pair were inspecting a stone cross on the south gable of Christchurch Cathedral for damage caused by the previous big quake. John Hare, one of the men, clung on to the stone cross while his workmate gripped on to the stone gable to steady the basket.
"We just shared a life-changing experience," Mr Hare told Fairfax newspapers' stuff.co.nz website. Flick Holmes, a cafe proprietor, said: "It definitely was a very big one, everything rocked. "Just when you are getting used to it, another goes." Across the city fire and car alarms were shrieking, set off by the shaking, but there were no reports of fires.
Christchurch's international airport was closed, with 300 construction workers evacuated, and planes still in the air were put into a holding pattern until the runways could be inspected. Christchurch Hospital switched to emergency generators as power failed. The main quake in September was the most destructive to strike New Zealand in 80 years, damaging up to 100,000 homes.
