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Mud pushes up through a Christchurch river - Source: Supplied -
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The rural community has offered practical help to city residents hit by the 7.1 magnitude earthquake west of Christchurch this morning.
Three milk tankers have been converted into water tankers which have been driven to Addington Raceway, Lynwood High School, and Burnside High School for people to collect water if they need it.
"One of the biggest issues is fresh water," Conor English, Federated farmers chief executive said. "With the devastation knocking out power, sewage and water, our city cousins are in a tough spot.
"We just want to do whatever we can to help Christchurch get back its feet," he said.
Farmers were also affected by the powerful quake with reports of damage to grain silos and milking platforms.
And power outages also hit farmers with calls going out for generators. DairyNZ acting regional leader for Canterbury, Simon Sankey, said farmers without generators were milking cows at neighbouring farms which had not suffered damage.
"We've heard of several cases of where rotary milking systems have come off their platforms, so they're out of commission," he said.
The worst affected rural area was between Dunsandel and the Waimakariri River. Federated Farmers North Canterbury provincial president Neil Stott said a lot of chimneys were damaged.
He said DairyNZ research showed that cows can go without being milked for up to four days, without a noticeable effect on subsequent production, as long as they're given the same amount of feed as they would be if they were being milked.
Stott can be contacted by farmers on 03 3188577.
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Add a Comment:
Post new commentgordy said on 2010-09-09 @ 13:59 NZDT: Report abusive post
Im my 51 years on this earth I have never felt so pertrified..my first thoughts was we had been hit by a nuclear bomb and it was Armageddon. Never ever want to experience it again
schicken said on 2010-09-08 @ 19:15 NZDT: Report abusive post
I thought the same thing initially. However, another quake big enough to close or shift the cracks further is likely to be heard first and all the kids will most likely be fine. If a child does get swallowed up, I'm probably not going to have huge empathy for the media coverage or their parents, but until then, let the region have a little bit of fun. Education about health risks regarding contaminated water may be a good idea for all. :)
thinkaboutit said on 2010-09-06 @ 23:06 NZDT: Report abusive post
More great coverage tonight TVNZ especially highlighting the situation at individual community levels where people reported they felt abandoned. All credit to those organising themselves into community working groups at this level despite this. Arguably the recovery process would be greatly enhanced if these community groups were psychologically and practically supported by establishing official coordination centres at individual community levels.
Madeleine Ware said on 2010-09-06 @ 17:31 NZDT: Report abusive post
You're making some good points here. Perhaps some of the donations could be towards purchasing and setting up storage of these sorts of things. Individuals are also responsible for making their own preparations. I clean and keep old 3L juice bottles filled with water. Every now and then I water my house plants with one and refill it to refresh it.
Madeleine Ware said on 2010-09-06 @ 17:25 NZDT: Report abusive post
Why are they buying water? Aren't there several tankers about the city giving it away?