A Walk through Earthquake-Damaged CBD of Christchurch

They'll rebuild the old ruins,
   raise a new city out of the wreckage.
They'll start over on the ruined cities,
   take the rubble left behind and make it new.
Isaiah 61:4 The Message

These pictures were taken on a walk through Christchurch central on Sunday 5 August 2012. Natural disasters make international news for a week or two - but are soon forgotten or people assume the area has recovered. These pictures of Christchurch CBD, 17 months after the February 2011 earthquake show the reality. The devastation is widespread - but there are new buildings going up and people have hope for the rebuild.

Implosion of Radio Network Building in Christchurch

The Radio Network Building in Christchurch was imploded at 8am on Sunday 5 August 2012. 63 kilograms of explosives were used and the collapse took less than 8 seconds.

The building was 14 storeys high and many of the buildings surrounding it had already been demolished. It was built in 1986 but  damage from the February 2011 earthquake meant it could not be saved.

The fall was spectacular and neat and even in the late afternoon, people were milling around, photographing the remains of yet another Christchurch building.