Thanx all for your thoughts & support. Could have been heaps worse. At least we're all alive.
calista,
Sep 4, 9:52am
Sorry it's taken me a while to report in. The earthquake made one chimney unsafe, so a friend (a chippie) and I demolished it.My front wall has also lost some bricks.I was so lucky, only lost power for a short time, and while books and stuff are on the floor, nothing broke.
Earthquake proof notice - don't put a bookcase so close to your front door that when the books fall out you won;t be able to open the door.
juliewn,
Sep 4, 11:53am
Ohh.. good to read that you're all safe.. my thoughts to you all.. hope you're all managing to get some sleep tonight..
Thanks Calista.. I hadn't thought of a bookcase near a door stopping access.. will need to firmly fasten the bookcase to a wall for earthquakes.
My thoughts to you too 245sam/Shirley.. hope you're ok there.. take care..
donald6,
Sep 4, 12:16pm
Our thoughts to everyone too. I'm a past Cantabrian, lived in St Albans but experienced a couple of bad quakes in Dannevirke a few years ago so have an idea of what you are all going through. Hope you all manage to sleep tonight, all the best.
2halls,
Sep 4, 10:26pm
I was awake when it hit too,I thought a freight train was coming down the street !Unbelievable noise and shaking.The fact that we immediately lost power and it was pitch black,made it all the worse (although it definitely saved lives),you couldn't even see what had happened around you.I've been too scared to turn my computer on ...Heaps of aftershocks (quite violent) in the past hour,my nerves have turned to custard !I'm on the hill and thought I would come sailing down onto the flat !What an experience.My cat has stuck to me like glue since it happened,I've just 'hidden' her under a blanket and snuggled her up so I can get on with some jobs !Take care everybody :-)
melp6,
Sep 4, 10:29pm
Agree, we have had no power or water losses. Only damage I had is a couple of photos and glasses smash
winnie231,
Sep 4, 11:23pm
Well, I'm back at my apartment and the power is on. The ceiling is coming apart in my bedroom & the down pipes have moved on the outside of the house - not sure what this means for the house structurally but I think I'm safe here in the mean time. The aftershocks are freaking me out though! I don't consider myself a 'nervy' person but I'm so jumpy right now. Keep telling myself to get a grip! Plenty of others worse off! Stay safe all :)
sumstyle,
Sep 5, 12:15am
Me and my neighbour decided today that my chimney is going to have to come down :-( that's if an aftershock doesn't do the job for me.
eastie3,
Sep 5, 12:24am
I have been in touch with many of my family and friends in Christchurch and thankfully most have escaped major damage to their homes although the cleanup is daunting.Apparently the Heathcote pub is totalled which is a real shame as it was the hub of the community.My poor friend was with her sick mum overnight,her mother died mid morning and my friend arrived home later to an awful mess.Now the weather is the next problem you have to contend with,you are all in my thoughts.
rema,
Sep 5, 12:31am
my love, prayers and thoughts are with you
tommi2,
Sep 5, 1:40am
thinking of all you recipe folk down in Christchurch
lizab,
Sep 5, 2:24am
ditto to all of the above - what a terrible black day it was for the South Island :(
neil_di,
Sep 5, 7:28am
Just had a walk around our area and its devatasted.. 5 houses condemned and more to come..people evacuatedroads in a terrible state..and we are now cordoned off..and water supply tenuous..talking about 5 yr old houses so it is very unnerving but it has brought the neighbourhood together and noone seems too glum..nothing that cant be fixed..people are more important than things..thanks for all the thoughts from fellow recipe posters
greerg,
Sep 5, 7:48am
We've been so lucky - just a pottery jug lost but have just been to take meals etc. to a friend at Rolleston who has absolute chaos. I think people got through the first day really well but some of those with worst damage are finding that reaction is setting in now.It's hard tobelieve that there weren't more injuries when you see some of the damage At least the after shocks seem to be dying down but the threat of another big one is a bit worrying.
noonesgirl,
Sep 5, 7:57am
Awh that is so sad. Kind thoughts to you & your friend in this stressful time.
harrislucinda,
Sep 5, 8:33am
my 2catshavenotcomehomeyet thiswindseemslike100 ksandsoundslikeanotherquakecomingthink willleavealighton tonightpowerjustcamebackat6pmithasjustbeenawful
sumstyle,
Sep 5, 8:45am
Wow - do I remember right that you are out Hororata way h-l?That's a long wait for power, glad it's back before a long night ahead of you.My cat came back after 12+ hours, and I've kept her inside since.Hoping yours are ok too.
katalin2,
Sep 5, 8:52am
One of our catshas only just come home at midday today. Have had 2 big days cleaning up at both home and work. Have been dismantling remnants of 2 chimneys at home- fortunately could borrow some scaffolding to get up there as it is an old 2 storey house. Lots of people helping with the clean up and the phone hasn't stopped going for last 2 days. Stayed last night with friends as the chimneys were looking so precarious and one of them is just behind our bed upstairs. Still too scared to sleep upstairs - will sleep on sofas downstairs. Will never forget sounds of the chimneys crashing down, thinks breaking downstairs, books from bookshelf flying in all directions in bedroom, old wooden house twisting and shuddering violently, expecting it to go at any moment. Had a very quick father's day dinner tonight- frozen squid rings, frozen chips, chilli smoked mussels and some greens from the garden- followed by platter of ginger kisses and black forest tim tams, all after quick trip to supermarket. At times like this, as a friend of mine says, thank heavens for shops! Back to the clean up... when preserves and chutneys and plum sauce hit tiles, takes a lot of cleaning up..after 3 cleans, tiles feel sticky. Thanks for your thoughts Julie and others- much appreciated. Not enjoying the mass of aftershocks....
toadfish,
Sep 5, 8:56am
Thinking of you all, what a terrible thing to go through.
A little concerned about 245Sam, sent her an email yesterday but still no reply.
calista,
Sep 5, 9:06am
Katalin that's awful . Apart from 1 chimney all I lost was an uncapped bottle of bubble bath, which fell neatly into the basin and drained away.Not that I could use it at the moment anyway.
I feel incredibly lucky.My cat is a bit unsettled, but she seems Ok coming and going as usual.
Regarding the bookcase by the door - even if it's screwed to the wall the books could still block the front door.
katalin2,
Sep 5, 9:11am
Very true calista- will be careful about positioning book shelves in future. The friends we stayed with last night also had minimal breakages- one ornament- so pleased to hear stories like yours and theirs as well. It will take a while for life to get back to normal in Christchurch.
katalin2,
Sep 5, 9:19am
power was only restored to some areas this afternoon- she could be busy cleaning up or may have had to move out as 20% of homes are uninhabitable in Christchurch- the Earthquake Commission man called us tonight and said they are expecting 100,000 claims- can't get my head around those figures. It is so lucky we have had no fatalities- if it had to happen, it couldn't have been at a better time in that respect.
juliewn,
Sep 5, 11:12am
Hi to you all.. wow.. a lot to go through.. am sending thoughts to everyone there in the huge area affected.. hugs too..
Hi Toady.. Shirley/245sam has been online in Trademe today - her feedback page shows 'Last logged in 5 September'.. hope all is ok for them there too..
I wish I could do something to help down there.
Take good care..
245sam,
Sep 5, 11:59am
Hi everyone and thanks heaps for all your concerns (and toadfish thanks so much for your e-mail) - both DH and I are ok although I have a sore knee from being tossed to the floor (by the eq) whilst trying to find my slippers to make it safe to walk where we were only too aware that there was broken glass.Sorry I haven't been in touch with you all earlier but we are in Halswell which certainly felt the force of the earthquake yesterday AND the many many aftershocks.From a very abrupt awakening around 4.30 yesterday we began a 20+ hour day which had us outside filling our caravan tank and most available water containers with fresh water at 5.00 a.m. (by torchlight of course as our power loss was immediate) then once it was daylight enough we had a walk around both outside and inside of the house to inspect the damage. Whilst absolutely ok to live in, our concrete-floored house is definitely going to need some repairs as it has moved, resulting in blocks and mortar moving, parting company and being loose – our heating is electric so thankfully no chimney to be at risk. Our own bedroom was basically unaffected, as was the bathroom, the loo spilt some of its water over the floor, the other 2 bedrooms were dishevelled but only very minor damage, we haven't yet got into the study/sewing room as the floor is littered with books, games, etc. that are against the door. The living areas have been the worst affected, although structurally, inside, the house is ok - the booze compartment in our lounge wall unit emptied itself of its contents causing the unit to tip on a 45° angle and it was because one of the lower doors in the cabinet flung open, that the unit didn't fall flat on its front. Our lounge smells very much of booze - rum, vodka, gin and marsala, from their broken bottles, leave a very long lasting strong smell!!The was-very full upper half of the floor-ceiling family/living room wall unit all but emptied of its contents so that along with the contents from the lounge unit we have a good ½-¾of a rubbish handy cart full of our very smashed lost items, many many of which have a significant sentimental value along with the obvious monetary value. The kitchen did not fare too badly although the floor did have a coating of couscous, chickpeas and other similar items along with their broken glass jars. In our laundry I had a very very good stash of canned items, bottles of sauce, oils, vinegars in a purpose built set of wall cupboards - these items covered the laundry floor so lunch yesterday was a lucky dip from the now dented cans!to be continued.....
245sam,
Sep 5, 12:02pm
I can assure you that the cans with the pull tab are very convenient but when they are sufficiently squashed they pop their seal and fruit, syrup and juice, along with the liquid from a broken was-full jar of gherkins, makes a very sticky brew on the floor.Our cars moved in the garage and whilst not sustaining any significant damage they both rolled back to force open and bend the tilt-a-door. We also had a water pipe outside that broke off and either the house with part of the attached pipe, or the ground with the rest of the pipe moved about 1½" - both of these were repaired, for now, by my DH and my brother who came up from Ashburton to help DH with them, as well as bringing a generator for us to maintain our freezer - fortunately by mid-afternoon tho' we had our power restored but no water until this morning when our CC Waterworks men turned the water on again.We kept going yesterday and last night until all floor areas were clear of debris and safe to walk on - there still some cupboards and the upper level of the lounge wall unit (crystal & other good glassware) to be checked yet but by the early hours of this morning it was clearly time to get some sleep although that was broken by at least a couple of the aftershocks.Today we had an already planned commitment that took us out and about which was very therapeutic as we now know that not so far from home, still in Halswell, there are those who have had a very much worse time than ourselves with some obviously having had water issues both in and around their homes, from liquefaction.The force of nature is absolutely amazing but there are positives to all of this and as was obvious yesterday, we do live in amongst very caring and concerned neighbours most of whom we spoke to yesterday and offered mutual support and any needed help. I do appreciate that you were all so concerned about me but picking up shards of glass and broken china, crystal (2 Wedding gift bowls), crockery, glass, etc. yesterday was a very necessary priority for safety reasons and today has really been a day of realising just how lucky we are that we are alive and ok, whilst trying to come to terms with what happened yesterday.Thanks again and all the best to you all, especially each and everyone who has been in any way affected by a 4th September that we’re not likely to forget.:-))
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