Busytown: The shakes
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Thinking a bit: the Earthquake Commission says it has $5.6 billion more or less, plus overseas reinsurances. So plenty in the pot to cover the stab-in-the-dark figure of $2 billion (being treated as gospel by media, I suspect, but that is another story.)
But depending on how much reinsurance pays out, 4 Sept will leave a pretty big dent in the kitty, from a shake that is an order of magnitude smaller than the Big One that will hit sometime.
Will the remaining $3.6 - $4.6 billion be sufficient for the future? Is the EQC fund big enough to cover the Big One? And should the limit of $100K+GST per house be revisited?
Must think some more.
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Jolisa, apparently here the correct tag is </pendant>, although I have never got to the bottom of the additional letter. An in-joke maybe.
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I actually can't imagine what it would be like experiencing nearly 60 separate aftershocks since the main quake.
I'm wondering/worrying about this too. If the original event is traumatic in itself, each aftershock must be a sort of trigger? Or, is there a cumulative desensitising effect?
I imagine the effect is different for people with different nervous make-ups, but can't imagine anyone (bar the very young) is finding it easy.
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Jolisa, apparently here the correct tag is </pendant> although I have never got to the bottom of the additional letter. An in-joke maybe.
In-joke = grammatical superciliousness always self-sabotaged by the inevitable typo/freudian slip twixt cup and lip. Tis funny. But my fingers absolutely refuse to type it because it is wrong. Wrong, I tell you.
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Wellington City Council has driven a massive project to identify and strengthen earthquake-prone buildings. Including just about all blocks of flats/apartments.
Do you know whether your building has been through that?
We're in Hutt City but, yeah, the place has been strengthened. That's why I'm morbidly curious to see over the next few days (a) how effective those strengthening standards have been, and (b) whether the handful of builders who contributed to leaky apartment buildings by cutting corners were doing likewise on any earthquake strengthening work.
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aaaand we continue to rumble down here in Chch
another good shake just then. Oh well, we now have tarpaulins in place to cover what remains of the brick wall and will just have to wait and see whether the wind or the aftershocks make it come tumbling down
interesting times....
but yeah... no school for the kids, no uni/polytech for me... I just wish the earth would stop rocking so I can get some writing done
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Or, is there a cumulative desensitising effect?
I'm low enough on sleep and high enough on emotion that unless it's big enough to make the windows rattle I can't really tell if it's me or the world doing the shaking and even the bigger shocks have to be pretty big before I react with anything other than annoyance. It is tedious though.
We just wandered round the corner to our local cafe (http://www.ristretto.co.nz/cafe.html) to find it bustling and doing a roaring lunch trade. it was heartening to see so many people being cheerful and normal.
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It is tedious though.
yeah, i was trying to work out how to explain this. Even for the nervier people I know, it seems they're losing the reflex to panic with all the aftershocks, but it's still... wearing.
Actually, it's like being nagged by a toddler.
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Just got back from the Warehouse with a bag of candles to find the power on. Hallelujah.
Great to hear you are well. Have you heard from the punster?
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I guess this has scuppered Jim Anderton's shot at being Chch Mayor.
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Thinking a bit: the Earthquake Commission says it has $5.6 billion more or less, plus overseas reinsurances.
Corrrect me if I am wrong but I thought I heard yesterday EQC had $15 Billion stashed away. That is a big diiference from $5B.
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Vangam, this prescient quote on NZH 30 minutes ago:
Christchurch mayoral aspirant Jim Anderton told CTV on Friday that it would take an earthquake for him to lose the election race against incumbent mayor Bob Parker.
The Wigram MP says is able to see the funny side of what has happened.
He says there has been an earthquake, now he will just have to see how the campaign goes. He says he will ask that contributions he expected at a now-cancelled campaign fundraiser be donated to the mayor's fund.
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Whereas people are evacuated of... well, that's when you need your portaloo.
Just quoting my neighbour, Jolisa. Around here, we tend to be as sloppy as the local substrate with our usage & abusage. As it happened, the earth already smote our laxity by voiding its bowels upon our little linguistic Sodom 'n Gomorrah.
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And should the limit of $100K+GST per house be revisited?
I think that figure is ok. The actual cost of replacement has not increased along the same lines as land values. Originally the Earthquake insurance program evolved from the War Damage act and so only covered improvement value, if your land slips into the sea, or river, tough but the building is covered. This assessment was based on Fire insurance and levied at $0.25 per $100.00.
It has been proposed that a levy based on unimproved land at a rate of $0.25 per $100 be collected by local Councils this, in my opinion, would be a disaster, in itself, and lead to those with large holdings taking a bigger slice of the pie and bankrupting the Country when "The Bigone" hits.
Some interesting info. Here
The figure of $100k is enough to get everyone back under a roof, let's not start talking about "Hard Earned Money"™ on this one. -
Ross, from About EQC:
There is currently around $5.6 billion in the (Natural Disaster) Fund which is backed up by reinsurance from overseas groups and a Government Guarantee. The Government Guarantee ensures that EQC will always be able to meet its obligations, regardless of the circumstances.
Their 2008/09 Annual Report reported the Fund stood at $5.57 billion at 30 June 2009. And on page 34 it said:
The Commission currently has the capability to cover a
1‑in‑1000-year event with an estimated value of up to $8.1 billion before having to call on the Crown Guarantee.That suggests to me that reinsurances overseas (=laying off bets) are purchasing cover to the value of $2.5 billion or so. Not explicitly stated by EQC though.
I'd be interested to know if 4 September will attract a payout from reinsurance or if it is not severe enough to do that.
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Christchurch mayoral aspirant Jim Anderton told CTV on Friday that it would take an earthquake for him to lose the election race against incumbent mayor Bob Parker.
what's the saying...never a truer word spoken in jest...?
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The Blitz spirit.
Exactly! It felt similar in London after the bombing (the 7 July and 21 July ones)
Re the old teachers college. I haven't seen it but my Dad has - he and Mum studied there and he said it was badly affected. -
John Key said on tv3 news that EQC had $6b in cash and 16b total. Given his relaxed approach to facts, I'd take that with a sackload of salt, though he did seem serious when he said it.
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this is typically done in the MSM using units of "atomic bombs"
A seismologist friend of mine has spent some time poking around the fringes of the Nevada Test Site looking at the effects of underground nuclear explosions. If I understand his explanations correctly, they use them to see what a known energy release does and compare this with natural earthquakes.
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I guess this has scuppered Jim Anderton's shot at being Chch Mayor.
Why? Serious question -- though if Anderton wins I'd cut the bullshit about being able to do two jobs. Under the circumstances, Christchurch needs a full-time mayor and council, and the electors of Wigram deserve a full-time MP.
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The aftershocks affect people differently.
They don't seem to bother the people around me - we knew from the start they would happen -always do after an earthquake, and that they were unlikely to be worse than what had already happened.
The people around me haven't had severe damage, so that may make a difference.
My niece aged 4 and nephew aged 7 seem unfazed.
I've escaped to Auckland - a day later than planned - and notice my nervous system calming down, and I'm beginning to lose my "sealegs". A hot shower was heaven (I've discovered why cleanliness is next to godliness).
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Coming to Auckland for relaxation says it all
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Isabel you must live near me - Ristretto is my local too.
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Ross, from About EQC:
Yeah. Probably was one of those momentary "listen but not listening" moments during the day. But I do recall thinking about the number so thats why I asked...sort of...
(Edit) Hmmmm...John Key said on tv3 news that EQC had $6b in cash and 16b total.
Maybe I DID hear it afterall.....
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I guess this has scuppered Jim Anderton's shot at being Chch Mayor.
Why? Serious question...
Because there is nothing like the image of the 'Man-in-charge-of-a-crisis' to boost the ratings - just ask Rudi Guliani. If I was a conspiracy-theorist I'd say that Bob Parker engineered this earthquake with the help of the CIA and a buried nuclear bomb..
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