05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, Colombo St demolition, condolence sign on CBD steel mesh fence cordon
April Fools morn, I'd seen the part-demolished bldg, when the steel mesh fence cordoned, red zone was opened to public. The cordoned area crawled with NZDF soldiers during the National State of Emergency.
Colombo St / St Asaph St: Devastated. Sanitized demolition rubble, along one side of Colombo St northwards from St Asaph St, past Mollett St, to Tuam St crossing.
Colombo St. Death Zone: In the Feb 22, M6.3 Killer Quake, 16 people died in the vicinity.
1. Why were there so many unstable, unreinforced brick, business bldgs on Colombo St before the 2010-2011 quakes?
2. Why were the unstable, brick, business bldgs on Colombo St still occupied post Sept 4 Darfield Quake damages, aftershocks & DANGER warnings?
05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, Colombo St demolition, relocation sign & flowers on the CBD, red zone, steel mesh fence cordon
05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, Colombo St demolition, flower & business sign on steel mesh fence cordon
05.07.11. Business sign on steel mesh fence cordon. Feb 22 & June 13 quakes, Colombo St trashed from St Asaph St to Tuam St crossings. Old brick bldgs would be demolished post quakes
Colombo St: Those deadly bldgs were all old, brick constructions. Demolition rubble lay around for months in the steel mesh fence cordoned, red zone, till I came along to see the final demolition. My snaps were unique, as no one else photographed the twilight zone then.
Gridlocked traffic behind me, besides the digger operator, the only other person was an orange, Hi-Vis vested workman standing on rubble behind Colombo St, steel mesh fence cordon, his truck parked on Colombo St. Condolence sign, condolence flowers & business ads hung on the steel mesh fence cordon. Only idiots placed ads in a death zone!
Sun 10.07.11. Colombo St: Leah & I drove past the demolition site, while rubberneckers watched a digger loading rubble into a dump truck behind the steel mesh fence cordon. CERA was clearing Colombo St rubble at last, 5 months post Feb 22 Killer Quake & a month post June 13 Quake.
Many demolitions were inefficient, wasteful, as heavy demolition machinery was transported to demolition sites more than once, due to part- demolitions then later full-demolitions. There were scores of trashed bldgs around town, part-demolished / made safe, then left for months to rot until diggers returned to finish demolition. Making an already trashed bldg safe, then returning months later for final demolition just wasted time.
05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, Colombo St apocalypse view: Digger on demolition rubble & quake damaged bldgs, leaning Westpac left & Hotel Grand Chancellor, later demolished
05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, St Asaph St / Colombo St cordon view, quake damaged bldgs, leaning Westpac left, leaning Hotel Grand Chancellor middle, Holiday Inn right. All bldgs in the pic would be demolished
05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, 2 orange, Hi-Vis vested workmen on top of Colombo St quake rubble, St Asaph St / Colombo St cordon
05.07.11. Post June 13 quake, St Asaph St view, yellow digger on top of blue truck, Colombo St cordon. Most of the Colombo St bldgs in the pic would be demolished
*Trekked St Asaph St, Colombo St. 59 snaps.
Coda:
Feb 2015. A director would take his musical about the Sumner number 3 red bus, crushed on Colombo St, killing 8 people, to the Wellington Fringe Theatre Festival. He was scorned by friends & families of the dead.
Luke was on a red bus too on Moorhouse Ave during the Feb 22 Killer Quake. It would've been less than a minute behind the Sumner number 3 red bus on Colombo St, going to the Bus Exchange on Lichfield St. Jake's bus driver avoided going down Colombo St & dumped passengers by Pak 'n Save, Moorhouse Ave. It was that close.
Content & pics Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Musical theatre to recreate February 2011 earthquakes (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Earthquake bus musical labelled very crass (The Press / Stuff Co).
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