Papanui Rd: Merivale shopping mall, a 2 storey bldg where the Feb 22 Killer Quake had ripped off the brick wall, exposing shops. A digger scraped rubble inside the steel mesh fence cordon. An USAR bloke stood around just in case.
NZ's Bill of Rights, Section 21: "Everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure, whether of the person, property, or correspondence, or otherwise."
NZ cops had a history of gang banging, commissioner Rickard's case pertained. Mine was figurative. Posts back, I'd referred to cops given unlimited powers in a State of Emergency, where confrontational cops could target citizens, enemies of the state, due to flimsy cop excuses, like "looting".
Gang banging NZ cops: Three cops deleted all my snaps on my Nikon Coolpix camera memory card. I'll call those cops Blank, Grey, Button, as they didn't ID themselves despite demanding ID from me.
At that early stage in the National State of Emergency, the CBD cordon was segments of steel mesh fencing around the CBD, manned by cops & NZDF soldiers. The CBD cordon hadn't yet morphed into 5 zones: 1, 2, 3, 4, central red zone, no access. There'd been night curfews & a media looting narrative, as billions of bucks worth of bldgs & belongings were trapped or smashed in the CBD.
Some people had fled their CBD homes, some stayed, had to ID themselves to cops & NZDF soldiers whenever they entered or left the CBD cordon. Harassment! Stress! Aussie cops & Singapore soldiers had arrived too, stirring the toxic mix citizens endured.
7pm. Moorhouse Ave / Monreal St (zone 1): Edge of the red zone, no access cordon, National State of Emergency. Yellow, Hi-Vis vested cops confronted me, after I'd trekked past them, snapping them lounging below a Weetbix Kids billboard. Those cops, if alert, would've seen me trekking along Moorhouse Ave cordon towards them, snapping in bright, late afternoon sunlight.
I told Blank to take the dust mask off his unshaven face, as it was impossible for me, a deaf person, to lip-read him if he wore a mask. I asked him, "Why are you doing this?" He went blank, deferring to Grey. Funny how cops go dilly when they see a camera. Guilty consciences? Yet citizens endured CCTV surveillance & speed trap cameras. Grey rummaged in his jacket to find his pencil & pad & asked for my ID. (None.) He asked for my name & address. I gave.
Button meanwhile repeatedly pressed the delete button on my camera, deleting all my snaps, exclaiming that I'd taken snaps of the RC Cathedral, where twin towers had collapsed in the Feb 22 Killer Quake. He smirked the whole time he deleted snaps, enjoying his petty power. He was amazed I'd walked from Pavitt St, where I'd parked my car & along Moorhouse Ave to Montreal St. He tried to find an excuse justifying his spite, like I'd been trekking the taboo CBD. I told him those RC Cathedral snaps were zoomed from Moorhouse Ave. I told him not to waste my camera batteries, that I'd perhaps walked further than him that afternoon. They hadn't a clue where Pavitt St was.
Although collapsed Christ Church Cathedral snaps & collapsed RC Cathedral snaps had been on the media since day 1 of the quake, Button thought taking quake damaged RC Cathedral snaps was the biggest crime in the universe.
When I continued along Moorhouse Ave into the setting sun, I thought, "No wonder NZ cops hired Aussie cops to strengthen them, during the National State of Emergency. I shouted back to the gang bangers: "You know my name, use it to see my blog. You'll enjoy it."
Sunday, two days later, the cordon was loosened closer to the CBD. Zone 1 had opened, but red zone, no access. So what was the point of the gang bangers' harassment?
When I'd trekked part of the CBD cordon along Bealey Ave two days before, Bealey Pharmacy ghost, Bealey Ave / Colombo St, was still half collapsed. When I passed again, gang bang day, it had been demolished with a quake damaged, red car put on top of the rubble pile. Button had spitefully deleted Bealey Pharmacy, demolition site snaps & Merivale Mall, ghost shop snaps. I'd already told him they were Merivale snaps, far from Moorhouse Ave.
Backtrack, deleted snaps, Fri 04.03.11. Bealey Ave / Whitmore St / London St / Fitzgerald Ave crossing: A Singapore soldier directed traffic. NZDF soldiers were paired with Singapore soldiers at crossings all along the cordon that day.
London St: liquefaction mud still wasn't cleared, 10 days post quake, despite London St becoming a main thoroughfare post quake, gridlocked, whipping up dust. I cut down Perth St to avoid the traffic jam while rush hour traffic fed Stanmore Rd. I got jammed in liquefactioned Alexandra St while cars tried entering gridlocked Stanmore Rd.
I drove along liquefaction damaged Pavitt St, parked by Leah's School. I found trekking down Stanmore Rd quicker than traffic grinding along the road, raising dust. I coolpixed water squirting up through bricks on a quake damaged garden path.
Stanmore Rd / Worcester St crossing: I zoom snapped ghost shops. A foul smell came from cordoned rubble in a cnr bldg. Two people were killed on Worcester St, when a brick wall collapsed into Wicks Fish. Button deleted those pics.
Stanmore Rd: I snapped a collapsed garden wall, & got gritty with dust. Schadenfreude, as I was trekking faster than traffic, while roads like Armagh St & Gloucester St fed heavy traffic into Stanmore Rd.
Calmer Cashel St to Fitzgerald Ave cordon: I snapped ghost houses, a collapsed garage, a destroyed shop & David's Book Exchange ghost, where a wall was stripped off showing books & equipment. Button deleted those pics. David's Book Exchange would be demolished.
Fitzgerald Ave cordon to Moorhouse Ave: I trekked past Singapore soldiers & NZDF soldiers at checkpoints, greeting them. Several cop cars passed me, none wanting to delete my snaps. I snapped three sweeper trucks, in a moving cloud of dust, sucking up quakemire along Fitzgerald Ave, turning into Cashel St in a cloud of dust & causing a Singapore cordon soldier to vanish until he escaped, choking. Button deleted those pics.
Fitzgerald Ave: I snapped deserted side streets, like quake undulated & dusty Tuam St, dust blowing like beach dunes on a windy day. I snapped a Persian rug ghost shop, thick quakemire outside. Button deleted those pics.
Fitzgerald Ave / Moorhouse Ave: I snapped bus depot ghosts & workshops. I snapped RC Cathedral ghost in the distance & rubbled pavement by St Paul's School along Moorhouse Ave. Further on I again snapped RC Cathedral which Button objected to. Button deleted those pics.
Moorhouse Ave: I snapped the station ghost, brick, clock tower, damaged in the Sept 4 Darfield Quake & Feb 22 Killer Quake, despite wooden reinforcements. I snapped Manchester St cordon by CPIT tech bldgs. (CPIT would later be renamed Ara). I stopped to buy a drink at Pak 'n Save. I snapped a sign stating only 400 members of the public were allowed in Pak 'n Save at a time due to the quake. I snapped a multi-storey ghost next to Pak 'n Save & a collapsed, concrete wall. Button deleted those pics.
Moorhouse Ave / Colombo St crossing: I snapped the concrete block supported & steel braced overbridge, cordoned by orange, plastic fences & road cones, rife along Moorhouse Ave. I snapped quake damaged Harvey Norman, fallen bricks in the entrance carpark & wood braced wall. Button deleted those snaps.
Moorhouse Ave: I snapped quakemire heaps & more quake damaged bldgs, like damaged walls of car dealers, the scaffolded pub by Montreal St cnr. Button deleted those pics. The pub would be demolished.
Beyond Moorhouse Ave / Montreal St crossing, after gang banging cops, I resumed snapping: Business, semi repaired gables; business, quake fallen, brick gables; blue portaloo near cops; orange, plastic, road cones; muddy sinkhole in carpark, liquefaction muddied roads; cordoned Antigua St: ROAD CLOSED
04.03.11. Blue portaloo, yellow, Hi-Vis vested cops, orange, plastic, road cone cordon, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
04.03.11. ROAD CLOSED sign, steel mesh fence cordon beyond. Deserted, cordoned Antigua St, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Liquefaction sinkhole in business carpark, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Liquefaction muddied Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Quake damaged, semi repaired gables, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Quake fallen, brick gables, 1 blue tarped, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
Selwyn St to Hagley Park: Collapsed, brick garage by a house where I'd snapped two weeks before. It was getting dark, so I quickened my pace past plastic taped sections by the cricket ground.
04.03.11. Feb 22 quake collapsed, brick garage, damaged in the Sept 4 quake too, Selwyn St, national state of emergency
Riccarton Ave, Botanic Gdns: I crossed Avon River Bridge by a WARNING CONTAMINATED WATER sign & a blue & white info sign about a quake condolence book which anyone could sign. There were several condolence book signs in Botanic Gdns.
04.03.11. Feb 22 quake Condolence Book sign, Christchurch Botanic Gdns, national state of emergency
Blue sign:
CHRISTCHURCH EARTHQUAKE
Tuesday 22 February 2011
A PLACE OF REFLECTION AND COMMEMORATION
All welcome to this peaceful place where you can simply reflect
and also leave messages in a book of condolences.
Available between the hours of 8 am and 4 pm daily.
Archery Lawn - Christchurch Botanic Gardens.
04.03.11. WARNING CONTAMINATED WATER sign, Botanic Gdns Bridge over Avon River, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Toilets Closed sign, Christchurch Botanic Gdns, national state of emergency
Several bits of Botanic Gdns were plastic tape cordoned: public toilets, the Peace Bell, some big trees. Another Botanic Gdns sign said Botanic Gdns were closed, Rolleston Ave.
After crossing another Avon River Bridge by Botanic Gdns carpark, I peed in a bush next to the public toilet, as it too was closed. A hand written sign on the closed toilet gate: TOILETS
CLOSED.
Botanic Gdns, Armagh St Bridge, steel mesh fence cordon across Park Tce: 3 NZDF soldiers sat on chairs, chatting up twilight girls (zone 1 / zone 4) near orange, plastic, road cones, a tram & olive military vehicle parked across the road. The tram would be stranded for 3 days before relocation to Ferrymead. I was unimpressed by NZDF cordon soldiers that time, slack, like holiday bored. (Like the gang bangers). But Singapore soldiers were impressive, upright, alert, polite. Some young, not shaving yet.
04.03.11. 2 seated, NZDF soldiers, tram, olive military vehicle, orange, plastic, road cone cordon, Park Tce / Armagh St cordon, national state of emergency. The tram was stranded there for days, until moved to Ferrymead
04.03.11. Orange, plastic, road cone cordon, tram & olive military vehicle. Park Tce / Armagh St cordon, national state of emergency. NZDF soldiers' girlfriends sloping off
I'd seen a blonde girlfriend in the CBD cordon chatting to 3 Kiwi soldiers, Moorhouse Ave / Barbadoes St cordon (zone 2 / red zone, no access). I doubted soldiers would be alert on cordon duty, distracted by girlfriends in the taboo cordon. Why were girlfriends with slack NZDF soldiers supposedly guarding the CBD cordon?
04.03.11. High rises PWC left, Forsyth Barr right seen from Park Tce down Armagh St, national state of emergency. PWC would be demolished for the new RC Cathedral precinct. Craigs House & Victoria Square flats below Forsyth Barr would also be demolished. Despite quake damages, Forsyth Barr would survived the 2011-13 quakes & be refurbished as Crowne Plaza Hotel
Botanic Gdns: I trekked beside sewage polluted Avon River. Fence cordoned Park Tce on the opp bank was too far away to see damages in the twilight. Feb 22 Killer Quake: People were killed in collapsed PGC & CTV multi-storeys, due to slack bldg inspections post Sept 4 Darfield Quake. Twilight high rises in the CBD looked OK from afar, but they were ghosts, awaiting demolition: PWC, Craigs House, Victoria Square Flats, Hotel Grand Chancellor...
04.03.11. Christchurch high rises seen from Hagley Park across Avon River & Park Tce, national state of emergency. The high rises would be demolished
04.03.11. Cancelled Ellerslie Flower Show marquee & quake tilted lamppost, Hagley Park. Marquee would later be used for the post quake memorial service, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Wind blown, quake weakened, fallen oak, Hagley Park, national state of emergency
Beside the steel skeleton of a marquee with the setting sun behind, I passed several felled oaks, two uprooted, one crushing a shipping container, some sawn into logs as precaution. There'd been media warnings about the Feb 22 Killer Quake loosening tree roots & later nor'westers felling trees. Fear mongering, tree surgeon ads soon appeared. But few trees fell in the quakes, trees well adapted to quakes, rising, swaying as seismic waves passed.
04.03.11. London booze bus & orange, plastic, road cone cordon, Bealey Ave / Park Tce crossing, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Bealey Ave view, scaffolded, brick Carlton Hotel, damaged in the Sept 4 quake, trashed in the Feb 22 quake, national state of emergency. Carlton Hotel would be demolished, a new Burger King rebuilt
04.03.11. Blue portaloo, steel mesh fence cordon, Bealey Ave near Victoria St crossing, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordoned, Saggio di vino, brick wall collapsed by the Feb 22 quake, Bealey Ave, national state of emergency. Saggio di vino would be demolished
04.03.11. Cordoned, brick Saggio di vino (soon demolished) damaged by the Sept 4 quake, trashed by the Feb 22 quake, national state of emergency, Bealey Ave / Victoria St
04.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordoned, brick bldgs, damaged by the Sept 4 quake, trashed by the Feb 22 quake (soon demolished) Victoria St, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Orange, plastic tape, steel fence & steel mesh fence cordon. Feb 22 quake tilted, brick bldg (soon demolished) Victoria St, national state of emergency
04.03.11. ROAD CLOSED sign. Orange, plastic tape, steel fence, steel mesh fence cordon. Deserted Victoria St, seen from Bealey Ave cordon, national state of emergency
Bealey Ave: Twilight. Car lights on. Red double decker, booze bus passed. I zoom snapped more Sept 4 & Feb 22 quake ghosts: Saggio di vino & Knox Church, brick rubble heaps on pavements, steel mesh fence cordoned. The Jap TV crew still camped in a brown mini bus on the road island opp Knox Church, which would be abandoned for 2 years before copper cladding restoration. Orange, Hi-Vis vested soldiers guarded the CBD cordon at intersections, NZDF soldiers paired with Singapore soldiers at steel mesh fence cordons.
I trekked past ghosts I'd coolpixed days before, like scaffolded Carlton Hotel, awaiting demolition. I passed pavement portaloos, oozing smelly liquids, shit, hand sanitizer pongs. Unforgettable. Quakemire piles still lay roadside. USAR / TF graffiti polluted the pavement, circled pink & orange, spray-painted signage.
04.03.11. Steel fence, steel mesh fence cordon. Orange, Hi-Vis vested, NZDF soldier & orange, Hi-Vis vested, Singapore soldier at cordon, Bealey Ave / Victoria St crossing, by brick Knox Church, damaged by Sept 4 quake, trashed by Feb 22 quake, national state of emergency. Fallen brick gables & walls. Knox Church would be abandoned for 2 years, then restored in 2014 with copper clad walls
04.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordoned, brick Knox Church, damaged by Sept 4 quake, trashed by Feb 22 quake, Victoria St, national state of emergency. Knox Church would be abandoned for 2 years, then restored in 2014 with copper clad walls
04.03.11. Orange, plastic, road cones, steel fence, steel mesh fence cordon. Orange Hi-Vis vested, NZDF soldier & orange, Hi-Vis vested, Singapore soldier, military cordon, Victoria St, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Memorial wreath on steel mesh fence cordon, quake damaged Knox Church, Victoria St, national state of emergency
Knox Church, steel mesh fenc cordon, memorial, floral wreath, hand-written tribute:
In
Remembrance
of those we
have lost
In a city that
we love
Kia kaha
Christchurch xx
USAR / TF & NZRT graffiti on Knox Church, brick, cracked nave wall:
ALL RUBBLE
CLEAR [no bodies]
NO GO
NZTF 1
1/3
VRD2 - DOG
CLEARED [Sniffer dog checked for bodies]
04.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon by quake damaged Knox Church, Victoria St, national state of emergency
04.03.11. Quake RUBBLE, USAR / TF graffiti, Knox Church brick wall, Bealey Ave. CLEAR meant no bodies
04.03.11. Quake rubble obstructing Bealey Ave by orange, plastic taped, steel fence cordoned, Knox Church, national state of emergency
Besides zones 4 & 3, I passed crossing cordons manned by cops, NZDF & Singapore soldiers. Bealey Ave cops looked more impressive in blue uniforms than Moorhouse Ave gang bangers.
Bealey Ave & Fitzgerald Ave cordons: I saw two NZDF soldiers, seated, holding girlfriends' hands in the twilight while on cordon duty. Looters paradise: gang banging cops, slack NZDF soldiers in a twilight, romantic, ruined setting.
04.03.11. CBD cordon notice on power pole, Bealey Ave, national state of emergency
Bealey Ave: Power pole, CBD cordon notice:
Attention Public
There is a cordon in effect.
From the timings of 0600 to 1800
Only personal [sic] with legitimate reasons and
home owners are permitted to enter the
cordon.
Home owners please have proof of address
and identification ready for inspection.
At 1800 to 0600 the cordoned area is under
curfew.
The only personal [sic] permitted to enter are -
* Health professionals
* Canterbury council staff
* Contractors
* Media
No Exceptions
If you have any questions, please approach Police or NZDF personal. [sic]
Thank you for your co-operation.
The martial law notice was unsigned. Anyone's guess who'd concocted that ignorance between personal & personnel? For months, martial law cordons would obstruct CBD residents needing ID papers when they entered or left the CBD cordon.
For 28 months some residents, cops, military, contractors, councillors, a few chosen celebrities, like MPs, clergy, choir boys would be allowed temp access to the CBD cordon. The rest of us banned. What cover ups went on in the cordoned CBD during all those hush-hush months? Slowy, business owners would be allowed into the CBD cordon, under escort, to salvage some business belongings, their time restricted to a few hours.
Along the CBD cordon I saw several military vehicles, including Unimogs. The overkill LAV was gone from Bealey Ave / Fitzgerald Ave. What were the military thinking? NZDF soldiers cuddling girls; NZDF soldiers & gang banging cops slouching on chairs at checkpoints. Were they quelling "looters"?
Later Luke told me he saw LAVs & Unimogs on Memorial Ave that Friday afternoon.
While snapping, it took me 3.75h trekking the CBD cordon & more, as London St, Stanmore Rd, Hagley Park / Botanic Gdns were beyond the CBD cordon.
Saturday 05.03.11. Quotes from The Press: After 6 months dithering, Minister of Earthquake Recovery Brownlee said the "old dungers" must go, referring to old, unstable, brick & stone bldgs.
Lorraine North, Chairwoman, Canterbury Arts and Heritage Trust, Merivale, didn't get it. Despite Merivale old, brick ghost shops trashed On Aikmans Rd & Papanui Rd she stated:
"Many of us [us?] value not only the aesthetics of our stone architecture but also the utopian 19th century values they represent... our most beautiful stone buildings reflect the importance our founding fathers attached to..."
Victorians & Edwardians had got it wrong: brick & stone death traps in an earthquake zone. Lorraine wittered, while quake crushed bodies still weren't identified at Burnham morgue.
Like post Sept 4 Darfield Quake, media hailed heritage bldgs. But Heritage hailers were chary about who would maintain dangerous brick & stone bldgs, who would pay for post quake repairs, (or demolitions & rubble haulage), who would use the seedy, rickety heritage bldgs? Sydenham Heritage Church ghost, now a pile of demolished rubble, had stood empty, unused for years, a stony eyesore, Brougham St / Colombo St. (2024. The Press: Thirteen years later, Anglican church authorities would whine about funding for stalled Christ Church Cathedral reinstatement, requesting congregants pay, rather than Heritage hailers who had wanted expensive reinstatement)!
Saturday 05.03.11 aftershocks: 2.29pm, M3.5; 4.39pm, M3.9; 7.34pm, M4.8.(Geonet). Shook our house.
Sunday 06.03.11. It rained heavily in the morning, still raining about 3pm when I drove from Burnside to town, to re-snap what Button had deleted on Friday:
Bealey Ave / Colombo St: Bealey Pharmacy demolition site rubble, a damaged red car on top, steel mesh fence cordoned.
06.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Bealey Pharmacy demolition site, Colombo St / Bealey Ave, national state of emergency
London St: Quakemired still. Gridlocked still, so I drove down bumpy, lumpy, muddy Perth St & joined muddy Alexandra St & muddy, cracked Stanmore Rd gridlock. Mud still hadn't been cleared from those post quake, main thoroughfares. But rain had settled dust. Cars were using quake cracked River Rd. Stanmore Rd / Avonside Dr traffic lights were working at last. Gridlock ceased thereafter.
06.03.11. Quake damaged, concrete brick wall, Stanmore Rd / Hereford St, national state of emergency. The wall would be rebuilt
06.03.11. Quake damaged, red stickered, David's Book Exchange, Cashel St, national state of emergency. David's Book Exchange would be demolished
06.03.11. Quake collapsed, brick garage, Cashel St, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Quake collapsed, brick house wall, Cashel St, national state of emergency
Cashel St: Re-snaps incl a fallen concrete block garden wall, a quake collapsed, brick garage & red stickered, David's Book Exchange ghost, later demolished. Rubble heaps all along. A white, 2 storey, wooden house was being board repaired by a workman, a white sign above the doorway: LOOTERS WILL BE BEATEN. The B was crossed out to EATEN. The house had had another Apocalypse sign on the doorway on Friday. Signs had sprung up all over Christchurch, written on cardboard, some humorous, most giving road directions: SLOW DOWN, FREE WATER...
06.03.11. Blue tarp. Board repair, quake damaged wooden house, Cashel St, national state of emergency
Cashel St / Fitzgerald Ave: CASHEL FISH & CHIPS ghost a mess, roof trusses exposed, fallen brick parapet & side wall, brick rubble in driveway, plastic taped, steel mesh fence cordoned. The shop would be demolished.
06.03.11. Earthquake Inspection Report, National Bank, Cashel St / Fitzgerald Ave, national state of emergency
National Bank, Fitzgerald Ave. It was the first bank I'd used after our Christchurch arrival, 1995:
EARTHQUAKE INSPECTION REPORT
Dated 1/03/11 Time 15.20
Owner Name: National Bank - Fitzgerald Ave
Address 1
Address 2
Address 3 Christchurch
Subsequent to the earthquake / aftershock that occurred on the afternoon of Tuesday
22nd February, a walk through inspection was conducted by Powell Fenwick
Consultants Ltd.
[Ticked box, green print]
Preliminary indications are that this building is not in immediate danger of
structural collapse and is safe to occupy.
[Unticked box, orange print]
Preliminary indications are that this building has significant damage and
should not be occupied. Restricted access only [illegible print]
Further assessment required.
[Unticked box, red print]
Preliminary indications are that this building has some areas of structural instability
and people should not enter or occupy until further
investigation and recommendations are undertaken.
Specific Notes [handwritten] Liquefaction - east
side of building, floor
level may be affected
No structural damage noted.
It is important to note that information is based on a visual assessment only. It is possible that
there is undiscovered damage that may become evident over the next few weeks. If this is the
case please note the areas you have observed and be in touch with the office to discuss them
if required.
[Ass covering by inspectors. What was the point of inspection if the building wasn't properly inspected?]
Please call our office on... immediately if you notice further damage or if you require
further information or assistance.
POWELL FENWICK CONSULTANTS LTD
Signed... on behalf of P.F.C. Ltd
The future Royal Commission of inquiry into collapse of CTV multi-storey nearby would uncover poor inspection reporting done, post Sept 4 Darfield Quake, by consultants making money from inspection reports like the above.
Fitzgerald Ave: The cordon had loosened since Friday, so I parked near a Cashel St red zone, steel mesh fence cordon, deeper in the CBD, manned by 3 NZDF soldiers. Singapore soldiers had gone. I snapped USAR / TF spray-painted graffiti on broken bldgs, brick rubble & a brick crushed car on a pavement, broken glass on a carpark, ROAD CLOSED sign on steel mesh fence cordon, close ups of the tilted Hotel Grand Chancellor. Several Sunday afternoon rubberneckers stood around chatting to NZDF soldiers.
Cashel St: Beyond the CBD steel mesh fence cordon, ghosts: Scaffolded Provincial Hotel ghost, St Pauls Trinity Pacific Presbyterian Church ghost, both damaged in previous quakes, both would soon be demolished. Beyond was abandoned, Inland Revenue multi-storey, Madras St cnr. Opp IR, I couldn't see collapsed CTV, where 115 people died. CTV was obscured by Holden Blackwell ghost in the forbidden cordon. Returning to my car, 4 blue uniformed cops sauntered past, livelier than gang banging cops I'd encountered 2 days before on Moorhouse Ave.
06.03.11. Quake damaged, brick bldg, Cashel St, near the red zone, no access cordon, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Broken glass in carpark, Cashel St no access cordon, national state of emergency. CLEAR - USAR / TF graffito for Clear, no bodies
06.03.11. Quake crushed car, Cashel St, red zone, no access cordon, national state of emergency. Window C - USAR / TF graffito for Clear, no bodies. Steel mesh fence cordon beyond
06.03.11. Quake damaged, brick bldg, Cashel St, red zone, no access cordon, national state of emergency. Backdrop: quake tilted Hotel Grand Chancellor, would soon be demolished
06.03.11. ROAD CLOSED, Cashel St, steel mesh fence cordon, national state of emergency. Serial quake trashed, scaffolded, St Pauls Pacific Presbyterian Church left, would soon be demolished. Hotel Grand Chancellor behind right would soon be demolished
06.03.11. Cashel St, steel mesh fence cordon view, quake trashed Hotel Grand Chancellor, CBD red zone, national state of emergency. Hotel Grand Chancellor would be demolished
06.03.11. ROAD CLOSED. Orange, plastic, road cones, steel mesh fence cordon. Cyclist & NZDF soldier, red zone, Cashel St, national state of emergency. The bldgs would be demolished
06.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Civvies, NZDF soldiers, Cashel St, national state of emergency. Serial quake trashed, scaffolded Provincial Hotel, Barbadoes St cnr, top right, would soon be demolished. Left bldgs would be demolished too
06.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Civvies, NZDF cordon soldier, Cashel St, national state of emergency. Serial quake trashed, scaffolded Provincial Hotel & St Pauls Trinity Pacific Presbyterian Church left, would soon be demolished. Abandoned Inland Revenue bldg beyond middle would survive the 2011-13 quakes
Fitzgerald Ave again: I snapped quake buckled, Tuam St, a black car bumping along the buckled road, driving closer to the red zone, no access, CBD steel mesh fence cordon.
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake buckled Tuam St, going to the CBD red zone, no access cordon, national state of emergency
06.03.11. White, plastic, tape cordon. Liquefaction trapped, brick wall, crushed cars in carpark, St Asaph St, national state of emergency. C on car windows meant Clear, no bodies
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake, brick wall damaged cars in carpark, St Asaph St, national state of emergency. C on window meant Clear, no bodies.
St Asaph St: I snapped 2 wall collapsed, crushed cars, stuck in a quakemired carpark, by a ghost bldg. Both cars' back windows had USAR / TF, C red spray-painted signs, showing Clear, no bodies.
St Asaph St / Barbadoes St: I told a NZDF soldier, standing behind a steel mesh fence cordon, that I'd seen ghosts on his turf demolished post Sept 4 Darfield Quake. Behind him I snapped a collapsed, old, brick bldg, rubble on pavement. He laughed when I told him cops had deleted my cordon snaps 2 days before.
06.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. NZDF soldier at red zone cordon, St Asaph St / Barbadoes St crossing, national state of emergency. Collapsed, old, brick bldg behind
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake damaged, brick parapet, red zone, steel mesh fence cordon, St Asaph St, national state of emergency
Barbadoes St: I snapped brick, Community of the Sacred Name Convent ghost, damaged in Sept 4 Darfield Quake & Boxing Day Quake, which lost its brick gables in the Feb 22 Killer Quake. Why hadn't authorities demolished that old, brick Convent months before? It had stayed an unsafe obstruction since Sept 4 Darfield Quake. (Convent would be demolished post 13.06.11 Quake).
St Asaph St: Beyond the NZDF soldier, I snapped another brick bldg, damaged by the Feb 22 Killer Quake, brick parapet collapsed.
06.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Community of the Sacred Name convent, damaged by the Sept 4 quake, trashed by the Feb 22 quake, Barbadoes St, red zone, national state of emergency. Convent would be demolished
Barbadoes St / Ferry Rd crossing: Red zone, no access, steel mesh fence cordon, guarded by a NZDF soldier, wearing a yellow, Hi-Vis vest. I snapped N side views of RC Cathedral ghost, twin towers collapsed, cracks below the main dome. Beyond I snapped CBD skyline views of jutting high rises, including Holiday Inn ghost & quake tilted, Hotel Grand Chancellor ghost, both would be demolished.
06.03.11. NO ENTRY. Steel mesh fence cordon. Yellow, Hi-Vis vested, NZDF soldier, Ferry Rd red zone cordon, national state of emergency. Backdrop: Holiday Inn & quake trashed Hotel Grand Chancellor, both would be demolished
06.03.11. Ferry Rd view, RC Cathedral, N facade. RC Cathedral was damaged by the Sept 4 quake, trashed by the Feb 22 quake, twin towers collapsed, red zone, no access cordon. Shipping containers would support the RC Cathedral front facade & transepts for years
Fitzgerald Ave / Moorhouse Ave: Cars ground by. Pedestrian rubberneckers dodged mud & brick rubble on pavements. I snapped red bus depot damage, fallen roof, fallen brick wall, fallen brick parapets, gables. Bus depot ghosts would be demolished post June 13 Quake.
06.03.11. Moorhouse Ave / Fitzgerald Ave bus depot view, CBD high rises in the red zone, no access cordon, national state of emergency. Quake trashed bus depot bldgs would be demolished post June 13 quake
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake damaged, brick bldgs, bus depot, Moorhouse Ave / Fitzgerald Ave, national state of emergency. Demolished post June 13 quake
26.10.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Bus depot demolition site, 8 months post Feb 22 quake, Moorhouse Ave / Fitzgerald Ave
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake damaged, brick bldg, Moorhouse Ave / Fitzgerald Ave, national state of emergency. Demolished post June 13 quake
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake damaged brick bldg, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency. Demolished soon post Feb 22 quake
Moorhouse Ave: I snapped RC Cathedral ghost again, quake trashed W facade, towers collapsed, pics Button had deleted 2 days before. Stacked shipping containers would support the W facade & transepts for years.
06.03.11. Feb 22 quake damaged RC Cathedral W facade, collapsed twin towers, Barbadoes St, red zone cordon, national state of emergency. Stacked shipping containers would support the W facade & transepts for years
Moorhouse Ave / Barbadoes St, red zone, no access crossing: 2 blue uniformed cops, in yellow, Hi-Vis jackets, check-pointed contractors' vehicles going into the CBD cordon. Last Friday, I'd seen NZDF soldiers & a girlfriend in that cordon. Since Friday, cops & NZDF soldiers had smartened up, straight backs, folded arms, more alert, not slacking on looted seats anymore. Not a girlfriend in sight.
06.03.11. Three alert NZDF soldiers, Manchester St red zone, steel mesh fence cordon, by Pak 'n Save, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Blue portaloos, Pak 'n Save carpark, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Moorhouse Ave, Pak 'n Save, quake sign, national state of emergency
Moorhouse Ave, Pak 'n Save window sign:
Due to Safety
Requirements
ONLY 400 People
are allowed
in the store
at any one time
THANKS FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING
06.03.11. Quake damaged bldg near Pak 'n Save, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency. The bldg would be demolished. Henry's would be built on site
06.03.11. Orange, plastic bollard cordon. Post Feb 22 quake, steel & concrete block braced, Moorhouse Ave overbridge by Colombo St crossing, national state of emergency. The overbridge would be repaired
Moorhouse Ave / Manchester St: At busy Pak 'n Save on the edge of the red zone, no access cordon, I snapped the cordon & CBD skyline, then snapped broken bldgs I'd done on Friday: signs; cracked bldg next to Pak 'n Save; collapsed concrete wall; Harvey Norman, propped by wooden bracing (soon to be demolished); quake weakened, concrete overbridge, strengthened by concrete blocks & steel bracing, orange / white plastic bollard cordoned. The overbridge would be repaired.
06.03.11. Cop car, orange, plastic, road cone cordon, Moorhouse Ave / Colombo St overbridge, national state of emergency. Beyond, old, brick station (Science Alive bldg). The clock in the wood braced, brick, clock tower stopped in the Sept 4 quake. The old station was trashed by the Feb 22 quake & would be demolished
06.03.11. Three alert NZDF soldiers at red zone cordon, Colombo St / Moorhouse Ave crossing, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Quake trashed, wood braced Harvey Norman brick bldg by cordoned overbridge, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency. Harvey Norman would be demolished
06.03.11. Green portaloo, liquefaction silt, buckled road, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
Moorhouse Ave / Colombo St crossing: Three alert NZDF soldiers guarded the red zone, no access cordon. The comfy South City wooden bench I'd seen on Friday, with a seated Singapore soldier, was discarded further down Colombo St. Military discipline had tightened since Friday. Meanwhile citizens, still under martial law, were banned from the red zoned CBD. Pity businesses lost, trapped in the cordon, business people stopped from accessing their business & property.
06.03.11. NO GO & X spray-painted on Feb 22 quake tilted, brick wall, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
Moorhouse Ave again: I trekked past Durham St Sth crossing, at the edge of the no access red zone, while snapping quakemire piles, busy traffic, orange, plastic, road cone cordons & quake damages en route. Some ghosts had NO GO spray-painted on walls, forbidding entry.
06.03.11. Steel mesh fence cordon. Scaffolded pub, Moorhouse Ave / Montreal St, national state of emergency. Demolished post June 13 quake
Moorhouse Ave / Montreal St crossing (zone 1): I snapped the scaffolded 2 storey, cnr pub bldg. (It would be demolished post June 13 Quake). On the opp cnr the cops were gone, but they'd left a mess for others to clean: chairs, table, plastic crates, water bottles, bicycle, metal stand. Hand written cardboard sign:
MEDIA
PASSES
06.03.11. Cop media passes sign, Moorhouse Ave / Montreal St, zone 1 cordon, national state emergency
Further down Moorhouse Ave, a digital road sign:
ALL
CONTRACTORS
USE
MOORHOUSE /
BARBADOES
STREET
06.03.11. Orange, plastic, road cone cordons, directing traffic, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Green portaloo, orange, plastic, road cone cordon, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Post Feb 22 quake, wood & steel braced bldgs, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
06.03.11. Post Feb 22 quake, digital traffic sign, Moorhouse Ave, national state of emergency
Back at Pak 'n Save, I shopped, still only 400 shoppers allowed in Pak 'n Save at a time. A pretty, Samoan checkout girl had a white & yellow frangipani flower stuck in her hair above her ear. "You remind me of a Gauguin painting," I said. She smiled.
Months later after trial shopping At Hornby Pak 'n Save, I would change my weekly shopping to Moorhouse Ave, Pak 'n Save, as it had above-ground parking. Post quakes I was spooked by underground & mall undercover parking. I'd seen too many quake collapsed garages.
One News, Mon 07.03.11, showed 2 blue uniformed cops patrolling in their Holden. Car patrolling cops were messing up quake broken roads, weak water pipes, weak sewage pipes, weak drains, while polluting already polluted rubble & liquefaction dusty atmosphere with exhaust fumes.
Martial law: Another TV item featured an Armed Offenders Squad (AOS) cop opining about 4-6 armed cops patrolling Christchurch that night, with guns. Were AOS stopping business owners entering their own business properties, retrieving business property & records behind the red zone cordon?
London St: Tues 08.03.11, two weeks post Feb 22 Killer Quake, I helped Leah clean up her 2 teaching rooms at her school. London St was quakemired still, while traffic ground past. Both sides of nearby Fitzgerald Ave in Zone 2 were opened, but by Avon Loop, near Leah's school, only one orange, plastic, road coned lane was open, where Fitzgerald Ave's northbound lane had collapsed, vast cracks roadside.
Dads had dug away most of the quakemire in the school playground & carpark. Some mud remained. A massive mud heap remained outside the school gate, more mud heaps along London St. The school was covered in liquefaction dust, some outside window ledges 1/2cm thick with dust. The verandah in front of Leah's class was thick with dust. The playground too.
The cleaning lady had already tidied up Leah's first floor office a bit, but Leah had to tidy her teaching aids & paperwork. The Feb 22 Killer Quake had toppled a glass fronted cupboard. The cleaner had left a plastic crate full of broken glass. I swept up powdered glass on the carpet.
I left Leah to tidy. Staffroom mess: spilt coffee smeared on the floor, broken glassware, powdered glass, broken crockery, chairs, books, periodicals strewn. Commercial cleaners would soon clean the school.
Leah's classroom was a mess. While cleaning, I felt the terror: cloying liquefaction dust, pasting my nose, eyes, mouth & throat, making me cough. Leah's little hell cnr: books, teaching aids strewn, shelf stuff on the floor, teacher's & kids' stuff scattered.
Leaving teacher desk & records for Leah to tidy, I rearranged tangled desks, straightened a displaced, steel cupboard, replaced tumbled chairs, cleared up fallen teacher aids, games, chalk, board duster, swept up masses of seeds, scattered from 2 plastic buckets, seeds crushed by the steel cupboard, feed for pet rats.
Coda:
07.09.11. The Press headline: Earthquake photos Police produce charity book.
The Press reported: "'Christchurch 22.2 Beyond the Cordon' Hodder Moa, Auckland, 2011, features 256 images shot by police photographers as the rescue and recovery operation was underway...
All royalties from the book will go to the Christchurch Family Help Trust."
As media cops I'd encountered 6 months before had check-pointed media passes into the CBD, red zone, cordon, they would've known about other media / forensic cops taking exclusive pics in the red zone.
The cops' book Introduction stated: "While the photographers saw themselves as privileged in playing a part in victim identification, they were also the only photographers in the central city 'red zone' for three weeks after the initial earthquake. That meant they were the only ones able to capture events as they unfolded."
So what was the point of harassing Media cops, Moorhouse Ave / Montreal St? Anyone with a zoom lens could've taken red zone CBD snaps, if they weren't harassed by cops & NZDF soldiers. Media cops had been scared of competition from my small zoom pics of the RC Cathedral which I'd snapped from Moorhouse Ave.
Christchurch public, who'd survived 4 major quakes & 1 000s of aftershocks over the last year, were still banned from the red zone at the time of publication. There was talk of allowing foreign media access to the CBD, red zone, cordon during Rugby World Cup. The cops I'd encountered, Moorhouse Ave / Montreal St, had protected their mates' exclusive pics in the red zone, their deleting my pics, malfeasance.
Tue 19.11.13. The Press. More than 2 years later, a top cop would be indignant about senior constable Mayer admitting guilt at his trial for soliciting sex in uniform from the public whilst on duty. Cop ethos we endured during 2010-13 quakes!
*Trekked Moorhouse Ave, Selwyn St, Botanic Gdns, Armagh St, Hagley Park, Bealey Ave, Stanmore Rd, Cashel St, Tuam St, St Asaph St, Ferry Rd. 113 snaps.
Facebook:
The Star, 02 Mar, lawyer said, "Christchurch City Council inspected the building [CTV, 115 dead] following the September earthquake and deemed it safe for occupation." 3 Mar 4:34am.
Civil Defence, cops, military are thinking of relaxing the CBD cordon for a while, to allow people to fetch possessions, business records, to carry on business elsewhere. 3 Mar 6:15am.
NZ National govt is coughing up $10 000 to families for those who died. Hope it covers a decent funeral & headstone / memorial.
Jake is not eligible for the one-off, $500 singles Red Cross grant, as he's luckily still being paid by his employer [business interruption insurance] despite no work. Waiting for the restaurant to be inspected. 3 Mar 7:20am.
Why haven't Civil Defence & Council cleared quakemire away on Stanmore Rd & London St? Those narrow roads, houses & businesses are covered in liquefaction dust. Those tiny roads, gridlocked for a week, are now main, unsafe thoroughfares past Leah's school, bottle-necking traffic from Bealey Ave & Avonside Dr & other roads' heavy traffic, like Armagh St.
Council is now sending water tankers to spray Bealey Ave & Stanmore Rd to settle dust [makes mud] ineffectual, a health hazard. Clear the mud first! Dread thinking of germs settling into Leah's school after all that dust penetration. 3 Mar 8:28am.
Bealey Ave: Walked along, spitting like a consumptive in a dust storm. Wasn't going to swallow grit in my mouth, like cement dust, in my hair & beard. (Used a mask for my next walk).
Death toll 163. [Final toll 185]. National Memorial Service soon.
22 000 still without power.
PM John Key to visit bad suburbs today (One News). 4 Mar 6:54am.
78% have water, 89% have power.
50% heritage bldgs red stickered.
220 000 tons liquefaction mud removed so far (One News). [500 000 tons, CERA, Sept]. 4 Mar 10:07am.
Death toll 165. [Final toll 185].
Sat afternoon aftershocks: M3.5, M3.9, M4.8, shook our house.
Moorhouse Ave: Sat, while I walked the CBD cordon, 3 spiteful cops harassed, deleted my snaps. Aussie cops were hired to strengthen locals. Saw Kiwi soldiers holding girlfriends' hands in cordon, LOL. Singapore soldiers looked more professional. 5 Mar 7:07pm.
@John. Unsafe bldgs are being demolished during the National State of Emergency, extended for another week, into the 3rd week now. Snapped Beckenham Baptist Church last week, quake trashed, demolished soon afterwards. 8 Mar 12:16pm.
Death toll 166. [Final toll 185]. National Day of Mourning 18 March.
95% Chch connected to power. 81% connected to water.
10 000 homes may be lost (TV & The Press news).
@Alan. Many people leaving Chch. Will they return? Much cleaning, demolitions, repairs, rebuilding to do. Workers, "foreigner" helpers, do-gooders cluttering Christchurch. 9 Mar 8:04am.
@Maggie. Billions of dollars of destroyed & "safe" bldgs. Belongings for the taking. Hence cops, soldiers alert, borrowed a helicopter from Auckland to buzz Chch, looking for looters, day and night. 12 Mar 11:11am.
Some destroyed schools are doing double-shift schooling with OK schools, morning, afternoon shifts. Some parents are taking their school kids to other towns & cities for schooling. Leah's school is OK, but sewage, water connections are kaput. 12 Mar 1:18pm.
Content & pics Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
I lived on the corner of cashel st and stanmore road just up from davids book store, got told my old flat was demolished recently
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that Philip. I drive past Cashel St corner most mornings. The demolitions are part of my life now. Every day I see more demolitions & empty lots. David's Book store gone too.
ReplyDeleteLots of quake damage along Stanmore Rd, especially Worcester St intersection, looks like a war zone now. Just empty demolition lots where shops once stood.
Demolitions happening all over Christchurch now: CBD, business, residential & soon red zoned suburban housing. Go well.