Massive Quake in NZ-Ya'All ok??

[Hoser John]

Horrendous pics of Christchurch desimate by a 7.0+ quake on YAHOO this am John

[goldtimer]

Hoser John; yep it was a pretty bad one. There are lots of roads in Christchurch now that are screwed up, buildings that have half crumbled etc.
The bright side though is that noone was killed. Because it was so early in the morning, there was noone walking around the streets. If it had been in the afternoon, a lot of people would've been killed from the huge amount of falling bricks and stuff.
Buildings can be fixed, but MAN the insurance bill is going to be massive.
It'll give the builders plenty to do
Cheers

[nuggy]

Yep, it woke me up here on the other side of the island. Friends and relatives in Christchurch have got damage, mostly just their pantry contents and ornaments thrown to the ground and broken. Sister in law has had her kitchen floor rise up two inches, and the back yard is full of mud that came up from underground, while a sewer line has broken and made a mess in the front yard. No power, water or toilet. Can't open some doors, can't close others, her phone still works though.
Brother in law on other side of Christchurch has to dig up part of his driveway, it has risen and jammed the garage door shut and he can't get his car out.
It is an area usually considered free of earthquakes, they have not had one anything like as big in known history.
They are just now getting a cold/storm front passing through with rain and gale force winds today Sunday.
Amazing no-one was killed with all that falling masonry, some beautiful old brick buildings badly damaged, many unrepairable by the look of the photos.
Yep, plenty of work there for builders.

[Hoser John]

YAHOO no funeral pyres. Been through many quakes here in kalif and things can be rebuilt--albeit much wisely-buckle up for the blow,radar says ya'all got a big'n a comn'-tons a au 2 u 2 -John

[nuggy]

UPDATE ------- Wind and rain did not arrive in Christchurch as forecast, supposedly still on way but wind not expected to be so strong on revised forecast. Nuggy

[kiwi jw]

Hi Guys. UP DATE.....UP DATE. On the news this morning. 5 more after shocks during the am. All above a magnitude of 4. On the sunday morning after the intial shock there were two at 5.4. There have been many many after shocks. Around 270 so far all up. Yesterday morning saw a shock of 5.1 at a new epicenter. Guess all that activity has stirred up the faults & they are releasing their tention. New Zealand is built by the Inia/Australian plate colliding with the Pacific plate. The collision boundry is up the west coast side of our southern alps mountain chain & it is the land upheaval from the plates colliding that has formed the alps.
From the south island the plates continue up through Wellington & under the central volcanic zone of the north island south of Lake Taupo, where the heat from the friction of the plates colliding has produced the melted rock magma that has come to the surface & formed the volcanos, & through Taupo ( which itself is a HUGE caldara volcanic crater) on up through the boiling mud pools & gysers of the Rotorua geothermal area, through the Kawerau & Edgecumb rift zone (earthquake alley) & on out under the south pacific ocean at the Bay of Plenty, up through White Island, An active volcano, & on up & around the Pacific Rim Of Fire.

To be continued with pics......I got some gold to go find up in the mountains.......

Happy hunting

JW

[kiwi jw]

New-Zealand-earthquake-moves-Earths-surface-11ft-right.

This US Geological Survey (USGS) shows on image of a ShakeMap of the South Island of New Zealand on Friday as an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 on the Richter scale struck



New Zealand lies along the intersection between the Indea/ Australian and Pacific tectonic plates



The Pacific plate is gradually being pushed beneath the Australian plate, which caused Friday's massive earthquake



Some pics of White Island volcano off the Bay Of Plenty coast.
The tip of a submarine volcanic mountain above the surface on a quiet day.



A very desolate landscape



Very stunted growth on the outside coastal fringe due to ash falls & high sulphuric acid conent in any water.



The crater is exposed as side of volcano has blowen out. In the early 1900's sulphur was mined here but an eruption that happened at night, while the miners where asleep in their camp, caused a lahar that poured sulpuric acid water out of the crater & washed the miners out to sea. That is what they suspect as not one of the 13 miners bodies were ever found. The only surviver was the camp cat.



Sulpur deposits









The crater. You wouldnt want to fall in there







Remains of the sulpur works





That expanded mesh would make for some great riffles



JW

[Hoser John]

FANTASTIC photos and graphs and man alive mother nature can be a byatch---John

[Darshevo]

Thanks for the pictures JW. That's a really rugged looking place

-Lance