Earthquake in Christchurch

Just wanted to give a quick update about the earthquake that hit NZ yesterday. It hit Christchurch, which is a prominent city on the east coast of the south island (about 5-6 hours north of where I am). 

(Sorry if that’s a little hard to see. I’m a Paint novice.)

I heard about it shortly after it happened, but didn’t think much of it. NZ is infamous for its earthquakes due to the fact that the country lies on a fault line. A majority of the earthquakes are either never felt or cause no damage to speak of. Unfortunately, this most recent one was 6.3 on the Richter scale.


Some may recall a 7.1 quake that hit the exact same city in NZ almost 6 months ago. Despite the previous one being rated higher, it caused less damage because it was further below the earth’s surface. (Sept quake = 33 km below the surface, Feb quake = 5 km below the surface.) This one was absolutely devastating. Two of the girls I’m temporarily staying with are from Christchurch, so we watched the coverage for over 2 hours. (Fortunately their family and friends are safe.) Buildings simply collapsed onto themselves, trapping and killing people inside them. There were fires, floods, and debris everywhere. Triage centers and places for people to spend the night were set up all over the place. Smaller towns in the area sustained damage to the point of making them unlivable. The last I heard, the confirmed death toll is 65.


Sorry for such a depressing post! But I just wanted to let everyone know the details, since I know some people were concerned as to whether I was in the area of the quake. I had actually considered attending the University of Canterbury (located in Christchurch), so I’m counting my blessings right now. Please keep Christchurch and everyone in the area in your prayers.



PS I promise to post a cheerier entry soon :)