Showing posts with label EQC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label EQC. Show all posts

Thursday, 19 April 2012

42 Things To Do in Christchurch


We love working away here in the motel office while listening to MIKE YARDLEY’s CANTERBURY MORNING Monday  to Thursday.  Its fast paced, honest and Mike asks the hard questions when they need asking!

One of today’s topics was “Essential Christchurch. What are the 30 great things to see and do in Christchurch?”  Lots of people rang in and talked mainly about local attractions but we thought there must be some “only now in Christchurch things” and came up with the quintessential list of 42 things everyone should do while here. Actually we came up with 41 things to do and Jeff's Aunty - a Residential Red Zoner - proposed the 42nd. thing to do which sits at 41 on the list.
Every visitor should do all these things……. which CAN be done!

  • Visit the site of the Cardboard Cathedral.
  • Stand in front of Museum and pray it opens soon.
  • Walk round the Red Zone.
  • Support a business within 1 block of the Red Zone.
  • Visit Re:Start Container Mall.
  • Use the 2 hr. free City Council car park.
  • Watch a demolition!
  • Eat in a container!
  • Drink a coffee or beer in a Container!
  • Pee in a container.
  • Shop in a container.
  • Listen to NewstalkZB morning show with Mike Yardley.
  • Take a picture of a road cone.
  • Decorate a road cone.
  • Walk through the Gardens.
  • Get a picture of the biggest truck with “DEMOLITION” written on the side.
  • Vote to save the Cathedral.
  • Take a picture in front of the large RWC Cup in Hagley Park.
  • Go Punting.
  • Feel an earthquake.
  • Feed the ducks, and eels in the Gardens.
  • Get great NZ cheese at Canterbury Cheesemongers.
  • Buy an earthquake momento – postcard of demoed building, aftershock socks or T-shirt etc.
  • Eat at a rebuilt restaurant.
  • See the White Lights of Hope at night.
  • Take a bus tour and see the city.
  • Talk to a local about their earthquake experience.
  • Try and work out who is the boss in Christchurch; Bob, Gerry Warwick or Roger.
  • Go to a café in the day and a gay nightclub at night in the same building.
  • Take a picture in front of the HSBC building – the real seat of power in Christchurch.
  • Look down Colombo St from Peterborough St to the remains of Cathedral Spire.
  • Look down Worchester St from the river to see the remains of the Cathedral.
  • Turn your GPS off & don’t eat while driving to safely navigate the Red Zone and road closures.
  • Visit & experience a Gap Filler project.
  • Say Hi to the Town Crier.
  • Take 5 and enjoy and support a busker.
  • Drive or bus out to Sumner.
  • Drive or Bus out to Lyttleton
  • Go to Deans Bush & feel the history.
  • Visit a local market.
  • Take time to walk through some of the residential red zone to gain an understanding of why people have to move.
  • Stay in a Motel.






Sunday, 27 March 2011

Christchurch Earthquake - Rapid Assessment


The Rapid Assessment is an important part of the Christchurch recovery effort with every house in Christchurch being visited in the 8 weeks from 11 March to divide all houses in Christchurch into 5 groups.  We had ours yesterday and got the “no structural damage” top ranking which is what we expected.

The EQC or Earthquake Commission is a quasi-govt insurance system.  Everyone that has private house insurance pays a compulsory part of their insurance premium to the EQC.  I always thought it was bloody stupid since Christchurch doesn’t have earthquakes….mmmmmm. 

How it works is that the first $100,000(plus GST) of earthquake damage is covered by the EQC and anything after that by private insurance.  Weird indeed, why $100K?  This is because when the system was set up in 1979, that amount covered most houses. There was not an inflation component built in.  EQC also pays up to $20,000(plus GST) for contents damage.

The rapid assessment programme is a first in NZ and came about from the problems that arose from not having a good programme in place after the September quake.

Our assessor arrived without prior notice (part of the system), looked around the residential area, sat down, tapped away on his ipad (not a 2) and then left, all within about 15 minutes. We now wait 6-9 months for a full assessment.  We don’t mind because many other are far worse off than ourselves.