Christchurch Cathedral and St. Paul's, Papanui; Canterbury New Zealand

[s.pilkington at LhIjLkXiCYkDBrkMoGXdzaCU52Ptxbi3uWtd4KnfiRZ0f65e4d7TeUYddEuWK4nD8jfyjaE9rSCzud-zS4svu7WjpA.yahoo.invalid]

Hi everyone,

I'm sure by now most people have heard about the 7.1 richter scale earthquake that hit Canterbury, NZ this morning. Photographs taken so far indicate that parts of the city, particularly the CBD have been flattened and other parts significantly damaged. No loss of life, but water, sewerage and power are suspected damaged, and a storm is expected to blow in tonight. I am sure our thoughts are with the people of Canterbury at the moment.

I was wondering if anyone has heard whether Christchurch Cathedral and St. Paul's, Papanui are intact and ok?

A church just outside of Christchurch apparently had its steeple shifted by 10 cm along the roofline and a crane will come on Monday to lift it back into place. If something like that happened to the churches with rings in them, it could topple, and it does raise the question of whether it will be safe to ring tomorrow morning or not.

Any thought or comments?

Kind Regards,
Scott Pilkington
           
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