NZ earthquake

[theKiwi]

There is currently an international feed coming from Television New Zealand here

http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/video-c ... am-4038451

This will be running at GMT Time from when I post this until 0100 Wednesday morning GMT (12 noon Wednesday NZ local time, 6PM EST in the USA)

It takes several minutes for the stream to load after that page loads - be patient, but it has worked for me to get connected several times on different computers.

Thinking of you my Home Town of Christchurch.

Roger

[theKiwi]

The story has been running continuously on Australian ABC News 24 since just after it happened. It’s usually a direct feed from NZ TV. It’s very distressing viewing. I’m not sure if it’s viewable outside of Australia or if NZ has an equivalent online service.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/abcnews24/

All the best to everyone in NZ and stay out of trouble.

Alan

At least for the moment ABC have removed the international block on this feed and it's viewable all over the world.

Another site I watched last night for several hours was http://www.news.com.au/ - they were streaming a live feed from TV3 in Christchurch with no international restrictions.

Roger

[Tracey]

Text my friend but dont know if cell phones are working ?

[momat]

They are requesting people TEXT rather than phone to ease the strain on services.
There is a bit more communications available but still stretched.
It is devastation.
New figures on dead are revised to 39

[Tracey]

She text me back instantly .She is South Island and so her and hers are ok but had to check anyway.

[momat]

The Earthquake area is the South Island.

[Alan SHARP]

Greetings All.

The situation is really bleak for many poor souls. Identified dead are in the 40’s but known dead are in the 70’s with quite a number more expected over the days as rubble is carefully cleared. This quake was only 6.3 verses 7.1 six months ago and a little stronger than many after shocks since September, but being so shallow and so near Christchurch, it has brought down buildings that were/have been progressively surveyed and thought safe.

TXTing is recommended. Some power was lost, some power supplies have been turned off, because of extensive damage to buildings. Live wires and rescue missions are not a good mix.

That has left numerous cell phone towers operating on battery power, that with normal use are expected to last 10 hours before recharging/replacing is needed. Because of the state of many roads and bridges with liqui-faction, the phone companies were unsure how they were going to be able to service the towers that only had battery power available, until their local grid is re-livened.

Today some rescue work, has had to stop because a neighbouring tall hotel block is showing signs of a major failure. Starting to lean dangerously. Just now the Police have stated that they do not believe there any more alive in the CTV building, and that the Hotel makes it too risky to continue there at this time. Extensive damage to the Port of Lyttleton, and many smaller communities is yet to be covered by the media, due to the difficulty of travel and picture transmission.

Specially trained rescue units are arriving from all around the world, and in association with well established Army and other bases near Christchurch the well practised rescue teams, are progressing as fast as they can.

A Google search will lead to many news services and their coverage of this event.

Alan SHARP.

[trish1]

Alan

It sometimes seems like our world is against us. It becomes easy to understand how our forebears thought there were super beings involved when such things happened. Living in Australia it seems as though there has been nothing but tragedy and natural disasters for the past many months. And, of course, I should not ignore the man made disasters and conflicts. Sometimes I want to tune out and pretend it just isn't happening.

Yet so many seem to pick themselves up and start all over. Sometimes it seems easy to give in to the depression, but there seems little doubt that there will be recovery. Today I was listening to much discussion related to whether and why those living on the Brisbane flood plain would rebuild in the same place. One wonders about this with Christchurch. When one loves a place and its surrounds, you want to rebuild, but does one consider that it could come down all over again. Many think it is worth the risk.

Sending all good thoughts for recovery to those from the area

Trish

[Alan SHARP]

What has changed is the almost instant ability, of an individual, to communicate, with modern technology held in one's hand. Pictures and low resolution video clips, fly around the world at the flick of a finger. In the 70's I would wait on the ships, I was visiting, until the Radio Officer had spent 20 minutes downing loading an A3 graphic weather map of the Pacific. Once the Captian had had a look, and they were not sailing on that tide, I was allowed to take it home for Dad to see when we were making hay. We then had it 12 hours ahead of the next days newspaper that arrived by rural mail. Similar means were used to send NEWS OF THE WORLD between newspapers. Alan SHARP.