Back in September, there was a 7.1 earthquake in ChristChurch, but the damage done then is NOTHING compared to the damage done in the one that hit last week on the 22nd. First of all, instead of being a deep quake, 15k below the earth's surface like the 7.1, this one was much shallower, only 5k, making the quake unbelievably strong, powerful, and destructive. After talking to numerous people the day of, every single person said this quake was stronger and much more damaging than the one almost 6 months ago. What also made this quake so bad was the fact that it was in the middle of the day, whereas the earthquake on the 4th of September was at 4:30 in the morning. This time around, people were driving in their cars, they were going out to lunch in the city centre, people were at work, etc... as of right now, almost 150 are counted dead and the numbers are quickly rising as they find more bodies in the rubble.
Just to let you all know, I was okay during it all. But I am not going to lie or sugar coat it, my family and I were VERY lucky. The morning started off like any other Tuesday morning... woke up, ate breakfast, and went to the children's music that I help lead... after this, my host family (Yolande, Neil, and Ethan), picked me up to take me downtown to one of their favorite dessert bars, a restaurant called Strawberry Fare - this is basically right in the centre of the city. Since it was my birthday, they wanted to do something nice... which it was! We ate some incredible food and I just enjoyed sitting and chatting with them. Neil and Ethan decided to go to the bathroom before we left... and a couple minutes later, it hit.
The earthquake was unlike anything I have EVER felt before. I stood there frozen for a couple seconds as I heard a couple panicked noises and saw the chandeliers shaking a little... and then the quake got worse very very quickly. Yo grabbed my arm and forced me underneath the table... but not
before a water glass hit me square in the head and dumped all over me. For the next 30 seconds, all I heard were shatters, crashing, and screaming. I had my eyes clenched so tight, just wanting it to all be over. I opened my eyes after it stopped, and all I could see was dust, glass, and rubbish all over the floors. Yo handed me all her bags and told me to go outside while she looked for Ethan and Neil near the toilets. I got out from underneath the table, and everything in the restaurant was broken and dust and debris everywhere. As we tried to leave the restaurant, we saw the door was blocked by debris and stones and bricks. We couldn't get the door open. Then all of a sudden, we heard, "Open the door! There is a gas leak in here!" Adrenaline obviously pumping through the veins of the man in front of me because he just shoved that door as hard as be could, got in opened, and started moving the stones around so everyone else could get out. We escaped through the rubble and got
out onto the street. I could smell the gas... but the really amazing thing? As I looked back at the restaurant, both buildings on either side of the restaurant had COMPLETELY fallen down and crashed into rubble. The restaurant we were in? Still standing.
I found my host family again as soon as I could. We had to stand on the side of the road for what seemed like hours, and then soon again shifted and moved around because of the gas leak. Yo was my hero at this point - we parked right outside the restaurant and she really wanted to get us home... thank goodness nothing happened to the car. When she tried to get into the car to bring it to us, several men stopped her and told her she was endangering her life and that she shouldn't get in it with all the aftershocks happening at this point. She moved them out of the way and told them her family was more important and she needed to get to us. While we were waiting for her, an aftershock earthquake hit us.. a 5.7... and it almost knocked me to the footpath.
Yo picked us up around the corner and spent the next hour trying to get back home... 7 miles away. Streets were flooded with water and people. Roads completely split open and man holes lifted above the ground. Also? Our car was running completely empty of petrol (gas). We thought on numerous occasions that we were going to have to hitchhike a ride home or walk because the car would literally start stalling. Miraculously, by God's grace, we got home.
There is a significant amount of damage done to their house... their entire lawn is destroyed and you can see cracks in the walls and in the ceiling. They are also worried that their foundation was broken
(nothing this severe happened in Sept.). Also, it took us a long time to even get INTO the house. See, all their doors were locked, and when the earthquake happened, every door jammed and moved so all the doors were literally jammed shut. However, thanks to me being super irresponsible, I left my bedroom window unlocked and we were able to crawl through and get one side door open. For the most part, everything is okay except for some of their China and glass goods... except now their house will probably forever reak of vinegar because of all the bottles that broke.
We spent the next 3-4 hours making sure everything was decently safe, cleaning up the kitchen (where most of the mess was), facing 20-25 aftershock earthquakes, and talking to neighbors and friends. Power is out, water is out, gas is shut off. I have barely even had service on my cell phone.
My host family and I left ChristChurch that evening and headed to Orao, a small town just south of Kaikoura, where Yo's dad lives. We spent Wednesday and half of Thursday here - We just needed
time away to recooperate and get sleep, which would have been impossible to get if there were afterschock earthquakes every hour. We spent some of our time out looking around town, but the other times we were at the house were spent watching the news, mostly. Hearing devastating death toll numbers, the eagerness of some of the community workers, the plans of the politicians for the future of the city, and just watching horrific images scan across the TV screen with survival testimonies to match. Honestly, I was getting sick of hearing about it. It was a bittersweet feeling - I was glad to miss all the aftershocks, but a big part of me wanted to be in the city helping friends and neighbors.
We drove back to ChristChurch Thursday afternoon and repacked for our planned weekend and week in Queenstown. [[A couple weeks ago, my host family planned on staying in Queenstown/Arrowtown for holiday after a family church camp weekend in Queenstown. We had a lot of touristy things planned, and although I was still looking forward to it after the earthquake, part of me felt so unsettled about taking a holiday when there is such a need for workers to help with the aftermath of the quake.]] We got power back on in the house by the time we got back (but still no water), so we vacuumed a little, starting taking pictures of the damages, and got our things to leave. That night, we drove to Rolleston, outside ChristChurch, and stayed with Yo's cousin. I slept alone out in a sleepaway shed. After a hot shower I laid in bed... and cried my eyes out. At this point, the adrenaline had run out, and I was just so broken-hearted and scared. Since this night, I wake up every couple of hours just because I feel like I am in an earthquake. Every rumble and jolt makes my heart race now.
Friday morning, we drove to Queenstown. I told myself I was going to be happy and have a good attitude about going on holiday, even if I did feel a unsettled about that decision. Over the whole weekend, ChristChurch was still majorly on my heart. Camp was really good - I got to meet a ton of really friendly people from all over NZ and America and just got to join people in genuine fellowship. I loved talking with some of the younger people who went to the camp (Holler at my cabin roomies!!!!!) , SO relieved to see some of the ReChurch staff there (finally), and got to have water (that we didn't have to boil!) and good hot food. I spent a lot of time reading and praying and just trying to refocus my attention on the Lord. Over and over again though, I found my heart drifting back to ChristChurch. I tried so hard to resist the shock and to stop thinking about it all and to just be happy to be well!
Saturday evening, Hamish called me. He asked me how I was feeling and if I was excited about the week of holiday in Queenstown. After a little talking, I finally broke down and told him how awful I felt. How as much as I was looking forward to time away and to do fun touristy things, my heart was so so heavy. I couldn't justify a vacation when there were people in ChristChurch that needed help. He then told me that his intention for the phone call was to ask me to return but didn't want me to feel pressured to come back if I really wanted to be away. After talking for awhile, both of us felt better about the situation and we decided the best thing for the team and for me would be my return.
As great as a weekend in beautiful Queenstown would have been, this was SO important. I know that out of disaster, God reveals his beauty and goodness. He tells us to persevere. He tells us to stay strong and faithful... that we will grow in wisdom and hope. I know that I am in New Zealand for THIS purpose, now. I, a broken woman, am going to reach out and do my best to love other broken men and women. What a perfect opportunity for ministry. Pray that the ReChurch team would be effective carriers of the Gospel, giving God every inch of the glory, while also loving people with every fiber of our beings. Pray for hearts and minds to be healed during this tragic time.
1 comment:
Hi There!
I'm happy to know that you were safe after the quake. I'm a new follower to your blog, and so far, am quite enjoying it.
Happy writing!
Elizabeth
Post a Comment