The things you’ll do for love after an earthquake
A plane, car and boat ride separate Bill Lonsdale and his partner, but that doesn’t stop him from making the weekly trip to see her. Such are the things one must do for love in post-quake Kaikoura.
The November earthquake created a wall of earth between the Kaikoura High School teacher and his partner, Lesa B’Do, who lives about 35 kilometres north in Clarence.
B’Do’s farmstay is one of six properties cut off after the main upper Clarence River bridge, 10 kilometres off State Highway 1, blew out in the magnitude-7.8 earthquake.
Lonsdale said the journey, which cost $180 to fly each way, was like an obstacle course, but one he was prepared to take. ‘‘An earthquake hasn’t stopped me,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s just an expedition I’ve undertaken to spend the weekends with my lovely partner.’’
The 110-year-old house B’Do lived in lost all four chimneys during the earthquake, including one which went through the ceiling of her bedroom.
With no bridge, repairs had been difficult; and she was also feeling the effects of the increased isolation.
While it was a major undertaking for her boyfriend of one year to visit, not to mention expensive at $180 each way, B’Do said she was appreciative of the lengths he went to. ‘‘Bill has made a big effort to make sure that I’m not too isolated,’’ she said.
‘‘After the quake it has been a big transition . . . he’s been amazing, he’s been lovely.’’
Recent heavy rainfall following the aftermath of Cyclone Debbie and Cyclone Cook had made the trip even more difficult. Additional slips had come down and the river crossing, undertaken on a small boat, was made more dangerous by submerged trees and debris, B’Do said.
The rains had even forced an end to the fixed-wing aero service between Clarence and Kaikoura, which was offered by the Air Kaikoura Aero Club. The rural landing strip at Parikawa had become waterlogged.
In the meantime, to get back to Kaikoura for the start of the school term next week Lonsdale would drive north to Blenheim and then head south via the main alternative route through St Arnaud and the Lewis Pass – all up, the trip would take a full day.
Residents in the Upper Clarence expected the bridge to be repaired by the end of the year, at an estimated cost of $1.5 million.