There have actually been over 10,000 earthquakes in the Canterbury area since 4 September 2010 (a number that's hard to get your head around), but the most destructive was that of 22 February 2011 which killed 185 people.
Over 1,200 central area buildings were condemned, about half of which have now been demolished. The economic impact wasn't confined to Christchurch - about 30% of our NZ business came from Christchurch, most of which ceased. Bookshops that were taken out included NZ's biggest and best automotive bookshop, Fazzazz, whose building is now a vacant lot. Others have since re-established themselves to some extent, but things are not what they used to be.
However, looking around Napier, which experienced the same 80 years earlier, and is now a unique city, you realise that if things are done right there is reason for optimism about the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment