US warship may be used to help with disaster relief effort
The first US warship to visit in decades could be drafted in to help in earthquake recovery efforts as the Government looks to get out stranded Kaikoura tourists.
Prime Minister John Key confirmed the USS Sampson’s two onboard helicopters could join the disaster relief effort and the Malaysian Government has also offered a helicopter.
Severe weather has hampered airlift efforts and Key said there were still about 140 people who were a priority for evacuation.
Key, Finance Minister Bill English, and earthquake minister Gerry Brownlee fronted yesterday morning to provide an update on latest developments.
Things weren’t going to revert to normal quickly.
‘‘It’s going to take quite some time to get back to the way [things] used to be,’’ English said.
There was significant infrastructure damage in Wellington, obvious damage in Kaikoura, disruption to transport links would be major, with both the Picton and Wellington ports sustaining damage, and the main arterial route from the North to the South Island would be disrupted for ‘‘quite some time’’.
‘‘This is going to add up to something fairly significant,’’ English said.
Damage to State Highway 1 and other infrastructure was so severe transport authorities may look at realigning parts of the network.
‘‘The slips are of a scale that are very meaningful . . . so one of the questions will become, in rebuilding the road, is it absolutely in the right place? Is rail in the right place? And how susceptible is it to a future earthquake or slip?’’ Key said.
The cost remained in ‘‘the billions’’ and damage to Wellington could be significant.
Key said the lesson from Christchurch was that damage which initially appeared innocuous could end up being quite serious.
Meanwhile, Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce would look at a business continuity and support package. - Fairfax NZ