Fragments

The February 2011 earthquake turned Canterbury upside down. We hear from the people who lived through that traumatic, life-changing day and what's happened in the decade since.

Introducing: Fragments

In less than a minute, Christchurch and its people will be changed forever."I thought, 'we're going to die, let's die together'." At 12.51 pm on February 22, 2011 a 6.3 earthquake shook Christchurch.185 people died.Thousands were injured.Everyone who was in Christchurch that day has a story to tell. Some have probably told their stories many times.In Fragments: First-hand accounts of the February 2011 earthquake, RNZ'S Katy Gosset brings together many of these different, but overlapping stories.These interviews, originally recorded by Christchurch documentary producers, Sandra Close and Julie Hutton in the months immediately after the devastating 6.3 magnitude quake, as a means of securing a valuable archival record for the people of Canterbury, take us back there as witnesses in their own words relive a devastating dayTen years have passed. How do these stories end? RNZ interviews some of those who were there to find out what's happened for them in the last decade.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

02-12
05:13

The Hills

A 6.3 aftershock surges out from near Lyttelton, across the Port Hills and into the surrounding suburbs.Watch a video interview from the episode hereAs a 6.3 aftershock surges out from near Lyttelton, across the Port Hills and into the surrounding suburbs, a jogger tries to outrun boulders falling all around her on a hillside track; a team races to protect people on the Port Hills gondola; a journalist travels from Lyttleton to the central city to find his missing daughter; two women take a wild bus ride through liquefaction and across broken bridges to get to the CBD and a Cashmere man loses his home.Ten years on, what impact has the quake had on these survivors? How have their lives changed?Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

02-21
49:06

The PGC Building

Trapped survivors wait while emergency staff and passersby begin an extraordinary rescue.Watch a video interview from the episode hereInside a collapsed building people with life- changing injuries wait hours to be freed while outside emergency services, builders, crane operators and a schoolteacher begin a grueling rescue operation. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

02-23
01:10:30

The Cathedral and the CBD

One man struggles to free others trapped in Cashel Mall; a policeman risks his life to rescue a woman trapped in the Cathedral Tower; a junior reporter survives the near collapse of her building to report from the CBD; a tour operator becomes an unofficial ambulance driver and a quick-thinking police officer holds an impromptu riverside Court session. Watch a video interview from the episode hereGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

02-25
01:09:42

The CTV Building and Latimer Square

Inside and outside the worst disaster site.Watch a video interview from the episode hereOne woman's impulse to run saves her life; roofers, carpenters and office workers are first on the scene to help people trapped inside; a husband stands outside the collapsed building for more than a day waiting for news of his trapped wife; emergency services take charge; victims are recovered and returned to their families. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

02-28
01:12:43

The Journeys

Through liquefaction, over rubble and around broken buildings, survivors escape the city while others journey in to search for loved ones.Watch a video interview from the episode herePeople stranded in the Forsyth Barr building must abseil to safety; a parent journeys on foot into the CBD to locate her young daughter while another walks for kilometres to find her son; a bus driver struggles through liquefaction and aftershocks to deliver dozens of school children to safety; a visitor to the city attempts to rescue people in Cathedral Junction; a community worker guides her charges to safety and a crane owner is key to rescuing people trapped in ruined buildings.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

03-02
01:09:07

The East

Strangers come together to save others in one of the worst hit areas in the city.Watch a video interview from the episode hereStaff and parents deal with wet, shocked children at QEII Park; a good neighbour suffers a life-changing accident; a maternity nurse saves a badly injured man; a wife waits for news of her missing husband; a St John ambulance officer deals with impossible conditions and a journalist on maternity leave finds herself inside her biggest story.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

03-04
01:03:34

Recommend Channels