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The Terrace on the Park apartment complex is condemned - Source: ONE News -
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Critical damage to a Christchurch apartment complex has come as a surprise to officials.
Authorities are racing to demolish an inner-city apartment building that has been declared dangerous following a recent inspection.
CERA general manager of operations, Warwick Isaacs, says the December aftershocks have made the building so fragile that any further shakes will cause it to fall.
The Terrace on the Park complex has been unoccupied for some time but it is now so perilous that four neighbours have been forced to leave their homes.
Isaacs told TVNZ News at 8 that engineers "triage buildings to identify those we expect to have suffered damage" and then work their way through them.
"This is one we didn't expect to find significant additional damage in, but unfortunately we have," Isaacs said.
"Walls are no longer even, there are big holes in the walls, floors have heaved right up.
"Floors a metre thick have lifted up and broken and steel that I would have thought is up to two inches thick has just shorn off completely."
Grim warning
Built in 2000, the building was not considered high risk, prompting a grim warning to all building owners.
"It is possible that there are some dangerous buildings out there that at this stage haven't been identified," Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee said.
Isaacs said building owners need to get their buildings checked by engineers to make sure they aren't continuing to degrade.
"The number of quakes are well in excess of the design capability of a range of buildings, including this one."
Isaacs said officials are doing their best to cover all the 8000 commercial buildings in the city and have a reinspection programme for the ones they expect to incur additional damage after significant aftershocks.
But he said owners also need to be vigilant.
"If you have a large tall building perhaps look at ongoing
regular monitoring programme."
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