Aftershocks.

[Chip-skiff]

Hesitate not, bump.

You asked for it, mate—

[seanz]

Chip, if you get a chance, watch a doco called "When a City Falls"........gets a bit gruelling but it's very well done.

[seanz]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/chri...-be-demolished

Just over a year since the Anglican Cathedral lost all structural integrity, it's been decided to demolish it. But the story is slightly confused about if there will be any rebuild at all or where that rebuild might be. Does look like the Church is taking the pay-out just to put it into other projects.
Oh well, it'll really help traffic flow in Colombo street......I'm going to Hell for that one.....
On the bright side.......idiots are willing to chain themselves to it......which, in a decent aftershock could reduce the amount of idiots.
We're still a good chance for a 6.0 and we'll almost definitely get a 5.0 in the next year.
I'm still being very choosey about where I park my car when I go into town.....staying as far away from brick and/or concrete wall as I can.
So, chaining yourself to a crumbling building might not achieve very much at all, nothing positive at least.


What are the little people doing?, I hear you ask.

Well.
We're waiting.
There was an update today on the geotechnical inspections for foundation repair and rebuild (that's us) on TC3 land (that's us again). We'll be contacted by the EQC before inspections begin, nothing about a timeline though.
Maybe they'll contact us next month?

[seanz]

It was the first anniversary of the Japanese 9.0 quake and devastating tsunami yesterday, spare a moment if you can.
I'm still grateful and impressed by the help we received from the Japanese after the deadly quake in February 2011.

[Meli]

+43

[epoxyboy]

I pulled out the old fence across the front of our property last weekend, and was left with about 15 deep poles. As it happened, I still had a wheelbarrow full of the last bit of liquefaction that we cleaned up a little while ago, in the course of resurrecting some semblance of order in the garden after a year of post quake neglect. Suddenly it occurred to me that the post holes presented a perfect opportunity to return the muddy glop underground, from whence it came :-)
My olds insurance company has decided to sink over $500K into repairing their place, in spite of the fact that the entire property has a valuation only a little more than that. To say we are all gobsmacked at the stupidity of spending half a mil on what is a small 1940's house of no architectural or aesthetic merit whatsoever, is an understatement.

Pete

[seanz]

Insurance works in mysterious ways.......

Just heard a story about people that are "isolated" green zone. That's surrounded by red-zoned condemned land for all you steady-landers. And they were wondering why they weren't getting anywhere with their repair process......now that they know they can repair. It appears that someone left off a zero when entering their claim. so it's under the $10,000 mark and "not a priority".....and they are being told that it can't be reviewed yet.....because....small claims are not a priority.

Anyway, on with the green/blue show......

Nek month.

The rules for our new foundations have been delayed for another month.......dum dum diddle dum dee.......

[seanz]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...battered-books

The City Library that's been behind the cordon for over a year will be accessible to staff again, so they can begin to recover books.
That's good.

[Chip-skiff]

Just found out that a friend who's a librarian (and a musician) moved to Wellington to work at the Alexander Turnbull Museum. I think her house might have been redzoned and the aftershocks were scaring her kids. He family's been in those parts for a very long time, so it must have been tough to leave.

[seanz]

People with kids have been the group that's made the most effort to relocate (that's just me saying that, totally anecdotal ), mostly because of school disruption but also because children develop issues with the aftershocks.
And who wants kids diving into the matrimionial bed every time there's a 4.0 or above?

One of our friends had to move because of anxiety issues. It's a hard thing just getting your mind settled and focused these days. I feel very sorry for anybody coping with any level of mental illness and having earthquake stress as well.

[epoxyboy]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...battered-books

The City Library that's been behind the cordon for over a year will be accessible to staff again, so they can begin to recover books.
That's good.

Sure is - the selection of books rotating through our local library has got very static. I lost track of how many series I started over the last 18 months that have the "next book" stuck in redzone library limbo.
Isnt this weather something! Two nice days in row. Now we can moan about it being too hot .


Pete

[Chip-skiff]

Some of my South Island mates are getting pretty whipped up about drilling plans near Kaikoura and elsewhere. Lots of material being published.

http://www.massivemagazine.org.nz/

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/environmen...ectid=10793194

Some state agencies in the eastern US are pursuing investigations after claims that fracking contributed to quakes. It's known that subsurface water lubricates faults.

Wondered if you have any thoughts on the matter.

[seanz]

Fracking is a threat to the environment, public safety and economic prosperity of the South Island. Just the mere fact that new insurance policies aren't written after a 5.0 (?might be 4.5, can't remember) should've stopped fracking dead.....or at least had a morotorium placed on it while this 'event' is still ongoing.

Fracking crazy......

[skuthorp]

Coal seam gas is becoming an issue down here too, so much so that the state Liberal government is making opposition noises. Whether it is just noise is yet to be seen. There's plenty of good anthracite steaming coal a few K's east from here, trouble is it's under the sea, and under the water table.

[seanz]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...ld-in-pictures

Yep, it's another photo essay...........

Documents the damage, deconstruction and demolition of a house near wetlands. Bit of an argument here about weather or not that estate should have been developed in the first place.

[skuthorp]

G'day seanz, we had a 6.something in central Aus last week. Has the planet quietened down at all over there?

[seanz]

It is quieter......but not quite quiet.
http://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/...nt_quakes.html
High 3.0s but not quite a 4 amongst all that. You can just feel them.
This house is so rattley that there are often little "couple conversations".....was that an earthquake?.....don't think so, it might have been me treading on a soft bit of floor.....I'm sure it was an earthquake.......might have been a small truck that went past.......noooo, check geonet......OK, nothing yet......Oh.......hang-on, there was a 3.2 about 10mins ago.......was that when I said there was a quake?......yeeessssss, I think so......Good, see, I was right.

[The Bigfella]

I had some interesting conversations with people who live in Padang my 3 days there. An Aussie guy "Shoey" who owns a surf charter boat (nice one too, ex Japanese patrol boat - huey.com.au ). The last big one there, 3 years ago IIRC almost claimed his wife. He was saying that a stroke of the pen meant she lived.... while 16 others died (total death toll was around 6,000 in that one).... her university class was divided into two.... one half Tues, the other, Wednesday. The other half didn't make it. Other than fault lines running along rural roads, well out of town - and some cracks running across tiled floors, I didn't see any signs of it... 3 years later. Siri, my hostess at the homestay, said that the reconstruction was driven by the local Chinese people. They didn't want any signs of it left.... for business reasons, so they made it happen. She said its very different in Aceh, further up the island... where there are still very visible signs of the earlier 2006 quake and tsunami.... and no Chinese community.

[The Bigfella]

Just had brekkie on the shore of the absolutely beautiful Lake Maninjau with a German chap, who is here to close down their office after earthquake reconstruction work from the 2009 quake. He tells me the official death toll on that one was 1,500, but the "real toll" was 2,500 - 3,000. Most of his work up here in the Maninjau caldera was slip-related. They'd had a lot of heavy rain at the time of the quake. The scars are very apparent on the caldera slopes across the lake. One part of the caldera isn't able to be re-built on.

I'm going to try and sneak in to the camp that was created for the people who had to be relocated. Thousands of them... into a camp with tiny semi-permanent housing. Each family apparently got a 2m x 3m shack - three years ago. The limited toilet facilities failed. There was a lot of rape of young girls.... and not many happy campers.

I've talked the owner of the restaurant I ate at yesterday to take me on a tour of the caldera - so hopefully I can talk her into taking me to that camp - although by the sound of it, the locals aren't too proud of it.

Sorry Sean... not meaning to hijack the thread onto other earthquakes, but it really is interesting for me to see how they have been handled elsewhere. I had a minor role in some of the Newcastle reconstruction 20 years ago btw.

[seanz]

Ah, but that's not a hijack, not at all. I like it when other people share their observations of post-disaster rebuilds. Gives me something to think about that's not our own personal rebuild.

6sqm? Kerrrrrissttt!!! If we relocate to the "temporary" village on the other side of the river, we'll probably be in a 50sqm brand new (in 2011) cabin....all "to code"........with a security guard.

Interesting about the different rates of rebuild between Padang and Aceh. It looks like the current administration and circumstances are favoring property developers of the greenfield to large estate type. And the only room for them is out of Chch......making the new Christchurch even more of a doughnut city than it was before.

[The Bigfella]

Well, my local guide - the lady who, with her sister, runs the restaurant I ate at yesterday, doesn't understand what I mean about the camp. The German guy from the NGO should know though... that was his job here.... Anyhow, the lady, Mur, and I have just done a lap of the caldera. Got plenty of photos and videos. Lovely place, but my fellow guest at the hotel - a retired Aussie teacher - tells me Lake Toba is nicer. Mur and her sister were very concerned about her reputation, "people talk" - so I had to meet her 3km down the road... and drop her off short of the village on the way back.

At one stage she took me up another damn goat track until she got too scared on the rocky single track. We must've crossed a couple of dozen temporary bridges - logs laid in line with the direction of travel... and most of the gaps filled with jammed in rocks. I say most... because if you picked the wrong line, you'd get well and truly stuck. I only saw two new concrete bridges going in. Saw a couple of Japanese guys documenting damage. Saw plenty of houses being built too. The scenery reminds me of Hawaii.... almost vertical vegetation-covered walls.

[seanz]

Anyway, on with the green/blue show......

Nek month.

The rules for our new foundations have been delayed for another month.......dum dum diddle dum dee.......

Well, it's "nek month" here, already.

A not exactly confidence inspiring story.......they've just finished the explosives testing........and we have less than two weeks of April left.....can they make it?
Stay tuned!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/6761...an-quake-fears

Some eastern Christchurch residents were given a shock yesterday as explosions shook their neighbourhood.

The Earthquake Commission (EQC) conducted tests at Queen Elizabeth II Stadium to help develop ground-repair techniques by detonating explosives to replicate quakes up to magnitude 4.0.
Some residents said a letterbox drop to warn them of possible noise and shaking did not go far enough.
EQC Canterbury events manager Reid Stiven said all houses "that could reasonably be expected to experience vibration" were informed by letter. The notification area was increased from the 400m used during tests last year by the Building and Housing Department to 500m, he said.
"Measurements taken at 250m recorded vibration equivalent to a [magnitude-2.0 to 3.0] earthquake. The vibration decreases markedly beyond this point," he said.
The commission has no more tests planned.

[Chip-skiff]

Some eastern Christchurch residents were given a shock yesterday as explosions shook their neighbourhood. . . .The Earthquake Commission (EQC) conducted tests at Queen Elizabeth II Stadium to help develop ground-repair techniques by detonating explosives to replicate quakes up to magnitude 4.0. . . .Some residents said a letterbox drop to warn them of possible noise and shaking did not go far enough.

I'd be tempted to subject the Commission to an arsekicking test: how many boot-to-bum impacts does it take before they register that they scared the bejasus out of citizens who've been scared more than enough.

[seanz]

I thought this might be happening.....but I think the majority of it will be vandalism, not fraud.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/chri...nts-burn-homes
Some desperate Canterbury homeowners are setting fire to their homes to claim insurance, the Insurance Council boss says.
Arsonists were responsible for 100 fires across Christchurch in March, including 19 in houses or other building structures, Fire Service figures show.
Since September 2010 there have been 1264 deliberately lit fires.
Insurance Council chief executive Chris Ryan said fraud committed by desperate homeowners was behind the increase in deliberately lit fires.
"We have seen it, but not to a great extent ... they have not got enough insurance to cover earthquake damage so they pick up more insurance when a fire happens soon after that."
Ryan said he was not aware of police charging anyone over an insurance fraud case relating to earthquake-damaged homes.
"It's really only anecdotal – but insurers are very much aware there is a degree of fraud – not just in Canterbury – it happens everywhere."
Canterbury Criminal Investigation Branch Detective Sergeant Craig Farrant said he was not aware of any charges against people relating to insurance fraud, however that did not mean suspicious arson cases were not being investigated.
National manager of fire investigation and arson reduction Peter Wilding said while some people may see it as a good option to burn down their house – it was not a realistic option.
"We are aware people are under enormous pressure but it is not a risk people should even entertain. There is a lot of diligence that goes into investigations. They could lose the house and their insurance as well."
Fire risk management officer Mark Thomas said the fire department was not in "crisis mode" but there had been a spike in arsons, particularly in March.
"These empty red-stickered addresses are being targeted and we are aware they are quite likely to be around for several years so we are going to have to monitor them throughout the next three or four years.
"We are keeping in extremely close contact with police. It's always been a good relationship but I think it's better now in terms of trying to really actively work in partnership."
Many of the empty houses were seen as "heaps of rubbish" and arsonists had no scruples about burning them down, he said.
"I believe we have more than one arsonist and I don't believe they are associated with each other in any way. The fear is by talking about it, it encourages people, but people have the right to know and it could benefit us by getting information back from the public."

Speculation on everybody's part as no charges have been laid. And, really, if you're waiting for some insurance company action on your munted house, setting fire to it will only delay the process.

[seanz]

Hurrah!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...guide-released

The foundation guidelines have been released.

So the long wait is over?

Ha!

The guidelines came out this morning, yesterday evening I was alerted to this.....

http://canterbury.eqc.govt.nz/news/w...burb-by-suburb

The dreaded drilling plan. It says 6 to 9 months somewhere in there, but stuffed if I can work out what they're talking about.
Things usually become clearer after the third or fourth press release.

[seanz]

Been a bit grumpy this week.......can you work out why?

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...ed-up-drilling

Anyway, last year we were told that every (TC3 Green/Blue, that's us folks) individual property (or so it seemed) would need drill testing......but this isn't so.

[seanz]

But here's something to cheer us up.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...mner-container

http://www.christchurchdailyphoto.co...ner-in-sumner/

People (with help from around the Whirled) have yarn-bombed a shipping container. Shipping containers in the streets are a part of life around Canterbury, they're used as protection from falling rocks and unstable (or perfectly fine and undamaged but not up to code) buildings.......only 749 to go.

[seanz]

Shhhhhhh.........the earthquakes can hear you thinking.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/6910...s-South-Island

A swarm of earthquakes has rattled the South Island but seismologists don't believe there is any cause for alarm......

The latest quake struck just before 3pm and was centred in the Christchurch suburb of Cashmere. It measured 3.9 on the Richter scale but was strongly felt across the city as it occurred at a depth of just 5km. ......

Earlier in the day Southland was struck by two quakes, the largest of which measured 5.5 and was centred 40km west of Tuatapere at a depth of 12km. ....

A magnitude 4.3 quake also struck the Kaikoura region this morning. It was centred 30km east of Kaikoura at a depth of 15km. ......

It wasn't me that was thinking "It's gone a bit quite, maybe things are getting back to normal".
I would never be that irresponsible.
Honest.

[seanz]

4.5 on Tuesday, so things aren't "normal" yet, not by a long shot.

And now, on with the CERA "Colour me a rainbow" show.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...still-in-limbo

Christchurch no longer has an orange zone.

A major land rezoning yesterday meant all the flat land in the city has been classified red or green, although the owners of nearly 1700 Port Hills homes remain in limbo.
More than 400 long-suffering Southshore residents finally learned their fate.
One hundred and ninety-eight of the 401 properties closest to the Avon-Heathcote Estuary were red-zoned and the remaining 203 declared Technical Category (TC) 3-green, meaning their land is considered the most badly quake-damaged able to be economically repaired.
Parklands East residents failed to convince the Government to rezone their homes red, with their properties staying TC3-green.
In the Port Hills, 421 properties joined the green zone but a further 1679 were in the white zone where more geotechnical work had to be done.
The decisions mean 7256 properties are now in the red zone and subject to a Government offer to buy them.
Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee acknowledged the gravity of yesterday's announcement:
"As I've said in recent months, the decisions have been anything but easy as we've progressed towards the end, but the issues have fundamentally remained the same."
Brownlee said officials had been "50-50" on whether the Southshore land could be remediated, but there had been too many concerns about the cost and whether it would work.


I really wish they would choose their words more carefully, 50-50 makes it sound just like a coin toss. I wouldn't be happy if they were talking about my home.

Interesting comment on the article....

Brooke McKenzie #2 8:20am
Thats cool Orange has gone so now green, red and white. So lets throw in an across the city Black zone. This zone covers all people in confrontation with EQC and Insurance comapnies. The Black zone incorporates all the people living in cars and garages and severely damaged houses. The black zone covers those in financial stress and those with mental health issues attributed to the constant battle with authorities, EQC and Insurers. The Black zone covers the people lining up at food banks and other agencies who have previously been doners and now receivers.
So we have got rid of the orange zone. Now lets recognise the real problems in our Black zone and start dealing with them in a combined and coordinated manner.
Lets forget about conference centres and new stadiums and other non essentials until we get our people sorted. We can and we must as we cant have this continual suffering and stress for sectors who never deserved it and who are being overlooked. Come on people, we can sort this mess out.

Black Zone? I'd prefer Grey, sort of illustrates the fog that some people are left living in. But they make a good point.

Anyway, none of that helps people in the hills in the White Zone, they're still waiting and probably will be for some time. One person living in the White Zone can't understand why properties just up the road have gone Green but her's (and others) are still White. It looks to her to be the same sort of land. Maybe it isn't but the lack of communication from the powers that be is really distressing people.

[skuthorp]

There's a TV programme on the subject sometime next week here I think. It's a bit of unknown territory for the authorities I think and regulations existing may not be adequate for the task.

[Chip-skiff]

Natural events (e.g. earthquakes) and governments operate by profoundly different rules. You can't influence the former, but the latter is subject to pressure and pain.

[seanz]

There's a TV programme on the subject sometime next week here I think. It's a bit of unknown territory for the authorities I think and regulations existing may not be adequate for the task.

Not unknown, ill-considered.

Earthquakes aren't an unknown in NZ, but the scope of the damage and the length of the reconstruction was poorly anticipated by (most, not all) people that should have known better and were being paid to know better than me. Even the scope of the demolition process was poorly thought-out.
And Christchurch is (mostly) flat and easy to move around in after a quake. If a 'big-one' hits some of the hillier NZ cities, people might as well pack their stuff in a bag and hike out to the nearest functional airport.

[seanz]

Natural events (e.g. earthquakes) and governments operate by profoundly different rules. You can't influence the former, but the latter is subject to pressure and pain.

Strangely, the Government was subjected to an increased majority in the Canterbury region.....doesn't leave the average Jo with a very strong hand.

[seanz]

4.1 this morning, 4.8 this evening......oh yeah, things are getting back to normal alright.

[seanz]

Ha! Hulk Smash......

Made me laugh, and it's good to laugh.


http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...hake-in-months

Christchurch got its biggest shake in four months last night when a 4.8-magnitude earthquake struck 20 kilometres east of the city.

The tremor came just after 5pm at a depth of 8km.
It followed a 4.1-magnitude tremor centred near Rolleston at 9.35am.

It was followed by several smaller quakes during the day including a mag-3.6 at 7.24pm, just 8km keep, and two late evening shakes which woke many in the city.
The first at about 11.30 was a mag-3.4 at 8km deep, followed about 15 minutes later by a mag-3.2 at a depth of 9km. Both were centred at sea off the Southshore coastline.
Geonet duty seismologist Caroline Little said a lot of earthquakes were centred in Pegasus Bay, near where the December 23 quakes had struck.
Yesterday's shakes were within expected aftershock patterns, she said.
"It's the biggest quake since January 15, and we can expect a few of these larger ones.
"It's just what's going to happen as Christchurch settles."
Police said there had been no reports of damage in the city.The quake prompted a flurry of responses on Twitter.
"Christchurch, the only place where you can watch Avengers in 4D," tweeted web designer Mike Walker, possibly from inside a city movie theatre.

Sel Leigh tweeted: "Hmmm can think of better places to be during #eqnz than on hands @ knees scrubbing toilet. Was like being on a boat."

Paula Brooksby posted: "That was a bit weird, walking round the house & all of a sudden the fish tank water slosh everywhere ... but I didn't feel it."

[seanz]

We've been averaging (roughly) a 5.0 or above every 2 weeks for almost 2 years.........

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...rnoon-shake-up

5.2 this afternoon. Just to give people a small idea about how 'individual' the experience can be, the Lyttelton Library was evacuated this afternoon, we were in the building across the street and we new there had been a decent shake but we weren't concerned......but that building is a rebuild (temporary) and that makes all the difference.

[seanz]

Link to some timelapse vide of an apartment block demolition.....beware, it slows down and the sound cuts in about half way through.
Good footage though.


http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/new...ished-at-speed

[Larks]

Good link, but where is it? Surely it's not really Christchurch, how many constant days of sunny weather do you really get there?

[seanz]

Nope, that's a pretty typical Christchurch Winter. Lots of clear blue skies, and 'crisp' mornings...........and the occasional 4" dump of snow.

[seanz]

Remember this?

http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...ps!&highlight=

No?

Anyway, drill testing of land in badly damaged areas is continuing and it looks like (based on the fact that the drilling has been ongoing for a month and a half in the first suburb) that the 6 to 9 months timescale is for the first part of the drilling.
We are in the second part......
Can't start a rebuild until they've determined (by drilling) what the foundation type will be. Can't see that happening this year.

On a bright note (sort-of) we had an afternoon tea here on Saturday, very nice.......it was our second annual Farewell The House Party. We had one in June ( I think) last year, so we had another one. Good fun. We're expecting a similar party next year, though it's remotely possible that it will be a house-warming......

[seanz]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/opi...-serious-quake

Not quite a 4.0 quake every day for 1 and 3/4 years........on average......they do like arriving in little groups.

Remember when we'd only had 1000 aftershocks.......now we have nearly 11,000.

[The Bigfella]

I'd been expecting to feel aftershocks when I went back to Sumatra, but didn't. I thought I felt one whilst in the shopping centre at Petronas Towers in KL... but couldn't spot it on the earthquake site.

I think I'd prefer the aftershocks... means the adjustments are happening, doesn't it?

[seanz]

Aftershocks are completely normal part of the process.....that's what we all keep telling ourselves.

The 5.2 from a few weeks back (May 2012) was said to be an aftershock from the December 2011 quakes.

So, we're getting aftershocks from the aftershocks......

Not a bad thing when you see what happens if a whole bunch of seismic energy gets released at once.


And these quakes are adjustments........they're seismic stress caused by the volcano (extinct, thankfully) that is Banks Peninsula.

[The Bigfella]

Hellooooo????

[skuthorp]

Had one here about an hour ago, decent 30 second shake. Down the road a neighbour lost a window. Two after shocks very close and maybe one more later. We have faults on 3 sides of the area, one goes up our gully about 50 meters away.
According to this http://home.iprimus.com.au/foo7/volcmap.html we are on the edge of a 'developing hot spot.

[Meli]

well the tidler we just got here in Melbourne 4.1 was the longest and strongest I've ever felt here.
I'll leave that for the keeper

[seanz]

Oh well, I suppose you let me post on the Oz Pol thread..........


That 30 to 40 seconds is significant, that's a very powerful 5.2. Expect a few little aftershocks over the next week......says your resident amateur seismologist.

[skuthorp]

We are on 10-20ft of very wet clay, I expect it was rather like a jelly on a plate.
Here you go:
"The US geological survey is reporting an earthquake of 5.2 magnitude, with the epicentre 10 kilometres southwest of Moe, between Warragul and Traralgon, in the state's southeast.
Windows were rattled and floors rocked as the tremor hit around 8.55pm and lasted for around 30 to 40 seconds.
The Geoscience Australia website crashed as people flocked online to find out what occurred.
Advertisement: Story continues below
The Bureau of Meteorology said the quake was felt further afield than Melbourne, with reports coming in from Bright and Myrtleford in the northeast and Wonthaggi in the southeast of Victoria."


Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/qu...#ixzz1yEu1cUBz

[seanz]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/austral...akes-Melbourne

An earthquake measuring magnitude 5.2 has shaken Melbourne and other parts of the Australian state of Victoria.

Windows were rattled and floors rocked in Melbourne as the tremor hit around 8.55pm (10.55pm, NZ time) and lasted for around 30 to 40 seconds, AAP reported.
The United States Geological Survey said the quake was centred 118 kilometres east-southeast of Melbourne, near the town of Moe. It was 9.9km deep.
The Bureau of Meteorology said the quake was felt further afield than Melbourne, with reports coming in from Bright and Myrtleford in the northeast and Wonthaggi in the southeast of Victoria.
Ron Smith from Kew said his whole house shook.
"We heard a roar and thought it was the wind," he told AAP.
"The floor and the walls shook, the whole house shook."
Jan Turnbull of East Bentleigh was in bed when the room started moving.
"My lamps were shaking and the windows were rattling, it was quite strong," she said.

10km deep is pretty shallow. I wouldn't want to own a bottleshop in Moe.

[seanz]

http://canterbury.eqc.govt.nz/news/w...burb-by-suburb


Ohhhhh, loooook. The drilling plan has been updated. They start drilling here in September (two years after the original quake, no rush) and should be completed by January.

Two things. This may change.....our are was supposed to start "in tandem" with Tai Tapu. That area starts in August. Why the change? Dunno.

And. Theoretically.......we might be able to start building in October but I have heard a rumour ( a pretty good rumour) about building companies and how much work they have planned for this year. So maybe we'll start in the New Year.

So, that might have the rebuild finished by the third anniversary of the quake that made our house a "write-off".

On a brighter note.......there is a house on the other side of our street that is at "lock-up" stage. It's on a different classification of land than us and it's the first (or most advanced) rebuild in our town.
Fingers crossed, it'll be finished before the second anniversary of the quake that wrote off the building it replaces.