Rain lashes NZ quake zone
Evacuation efforts disrupted by rough weather
CHRISTCHURCH: Rain and strong winds battered central New Zealand, threatening further damage just days after a powerful earthquake killed two people and devastated parts of the country’s South Island with huge landslides.
More than 1,000 tourists and residents have been evacuated from the small seaside town of Kaikoura by a fleet of helicopters and a New Zealand naval vessel since the 7.8-magnitude quake struck early on Monday.
Kaikoura, a fishing town and popular whale-watching base ringed by steep mountains, was completely cut off yesterday by landslides covering the coastal road and rail corridor.
Further helicopter evacuations from Kaikoura had been disrupted due to the bad weather, said Sarah Stuart-Black, director of the ministry of civil defence emergency management.
“We are really concerned about the changing weather situation,” she told reporters.
“It could mean that there’s an increased risk of further landslides, obviously surface flooding, so we want people to be safe.”
An inland road to Kaikoura, briefly re-opened to emergency vehicles, was closed due to more landslides, officials said.
Warships from Australia, Canada and the United States, in the country for the Royal New Zealand Navy’s 75th anniversary, arrived in Kaikoura to assist with the recovery.
“The ships, crews and maritime helicopters provided by our partner militaries have given us a great deal of flexibility in supporting the national relief effort,” said New Zealand Joint Forces Commander Major General Tim Gall.
Most of the tourists evacuated to Christchurch, the South Island's largest city about 150km south of Kaikoura, had continued their journeys but around 130 people were being housed temporarily in Canterbury University's student halls.
With damage expected to take months to repair, the government announced a NZ$7.5mil (RM23mil) wage subsidy package to support small businesses in Kaikoura for two months. — Reuters