As Christchurch endures a third day of chaos after the fatal magnitude 6.3 earthquake that struck the city on Tuesday, intense rescue efforts continue with the total number of victims thought to be 76 and 238 still missing.
Despite a long and cold night, the frantic search continued for survivors still buried under the rubble. But aftershocks are hindering the rescue, with more than 20 since the initial quake, mostly above 4 on the Richter scale. Many families are still waiting to hear what has happened to their loved ones.
According to the Civil Defense team, eight people were rescued from the Pyne Gauld building last night and three from the CTV (Canterbury TV) building. So far 32 people are confirmed dead and 120 rescued from the rubble there.
It is unclear how many people are still missing. National Civil Defense Director John Hamilton said this morning in a special news-briefing meeting, “This is a big problem for the search and rescue team as there is not an official list of missing persons.” He urged everyone to call the Red Cross hot line if they are concerned about a missing person.
He said Civil Defense is working closely with the government to consider international assistance. Additional search and rescue teams are now arriving from Australia—40 personnel arrived last night and 30 were due to arrive this morning, with special equipment.
Hamilton said rescuers are focusing on 10 buildings, particularly the CTV and Pyne Gauld buildings. “Until we have the search and rescue team go through each building we will not have a clear idea of how many people are unaccounted for,” he said.
According to police reports, they are receiving cell phone calls from within the rubble, and they know that at least six people are still alive. They fear more than 100 people may have died in the CTV building.
Inner city resident Andrew North told The Epoch Times that the office of the Ombudsmen is now starting to lean, as well as the Grand Chancellor Hotel, and there could be “a catastrophic flow on effect.”
North said this has not been made public yet, but rescue teams are getting everyone out of the area, and have pulled out of recovery operations at the hotel due to safety risks.
“So clearly the officials know, but they are not telling the people so to avoid the major panic,“ North said. ”It seems like they are expecting another major earthquake anytime, possibly of a greater magnitude than what we had on Tuesday. This is what is coming through the underground network.”
Many people are getting out “left right and center,” North said, having just spoken to a lady who has flown over from England to evacuate her 70-year-old parents.
Everybody who is able is packing up and going, and the mayor has also asked everyone who is nonessential to leave Christchurch and take the strain off the services. The infrastructure is so badly damaged, North said, and the suburb of Merivale looks like it has been “struck by a bomb.”
“The comradeship in the city is really, really noticeable—everyone is clubbing together,” he said.
There has been a lot of support throughout the country. Medical staff from surrounding areas has been deployed to the city, along with 200 police.
TVNZ reported that 300 traumatized tourists spent the night in Hagley Park. Half are being flown to Auckland and the other 150 will be transferred Wellington today. Many of them do not have their passports.
Despite a long and cold night, the frantic search continued for survivors still buried under the rubble. But aftershocks are hindering the rescue, with more than 20 since the initial quake, mostly above 4 on the Richter scale. Many families are still waiting to hear what has happened to their loved ones.
According to the Civil Defense team, eight people were rescued from the Pyne Gauld building last night and three from the CTV (Canterbury TV) building. So far 32 people are confirmed dead and 120 rescued from the rubble there.
It is unclear how many people are still missing. National Civil Defense Director John Hamilton said this morning in a special news-briefing meeting, “This is a big problem for the search and rescue team as there is not an official list of missing persons.” He urged everyone to call the Red Cross hot line if they are concerned about a missing person.
He said Civil Defense is working closely with the government to consider international assistance. Additional search and rescue teams are now arriving from Australia—40 personnel arrived last night and 30 were due to arrive this morning, with special equipment.
Hamilton said rescuers are focusing on 10 buildings, particularly the CTV and Pyne Gauld buildings. “Until we have the search and rescue team go through each building we will not have a clear idea of how many people are unaccounted for,” he said.
According to police reports, they are receiving cell phone calls from within the rubble, and they know that at least six people are still alive. They fear more than 100 people may have died in the CTV building.
Inner city resident Andrew North told The Epoch Times that the office of the Ombudsmen is now starting to lean, as well as the Grand Chancellor Hotel, and there could be “a catastrophic flow on effect.”
North said this has not been made public yet, but rescue teams are getting everyone out of the area, and have pulled out of recovery operations at the hotel due to safety risks.
“So clearly the officials know, but they are not telling the people so to avoid the major panic,“ North said. ”It seems like they are expecting another major earthquake anytime, possibly of a greater magnitude than what we had on Tuesday. This is what is coming through the underground network.”
Many people are getting out “left right and center,” North said, having just spoken to a lady who has flown over from England to evacuate her 70-year-old parents.
Everybody who is able is packing up and going, and the mayor has also asked everyone who is nonessential to leave Christchurch and take the strain off the services. The infrastructure is so badly damaged, North said, and the suburb of Merivale looks like it has been “struck by a bomb.”
“The comradeship in the city is really, really noticeable—everyone is clubbing together,” he said.
There has been a lot of support throughout the country. Medical staff from surrounding areas has been deployed to the city, along with 200 police.
TVNZ reported that 300 traumatized tourists spent the night in Hagley Park. Half are being flown to Auckland and the other 150 will be transferred Wellington today. Many of them do not have their passports.
