via tvnz.co.nz
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Christchurch earthquake: Rockfalls, liquefaction, injuries after quakes - National - NZ Herald News
ExpandThe scene at a Christchurch supermarket after the 1.58pm quake. Photo / Nathan Mercer (Twitter)
A series of earthquakes have terrified many already-frazzled Christchurch residents this afternoon, starting with a 5.8 magnitude tremor at 1.58pm.
It was followed by a 6.0 magnitude aftershock at 3.18pm, centred 10km east of Christchurch in South New Brighton.
Initial reports said one person had received minor injuries, although St John had responded to 19 earthquake-related emergency calls in and around Christchurch.
They ranged from complaints of chest pain and seizures, to a panic attack.
Five people had collapsed, and one suffered a knock to the head.
St John said all injuries were minor.
Police say there is no tsunami threat, and they have no reports of serious or widespread damage or injury.
Rockfalls and damage
People were urged to stay away from hill suburbs because of risk of rockfalls, and Coastguard had rescued four people who were trapped by rockfall in Boulder Bay.
Police said there had also been a significant rockfall at Redcliffs, a stopbank on New Brighton Road had collapsed, a partly demolished building on the corner of Barbadoes and Kilmore Streets collapsed, and a vacant house at 81 Aynsley Terrace collapsed.
Road damage and liquefaction
Major holes in the road were reported to have opened up on Broadhaven Avenue, and liquefaction was reported in Avonside.
Drivers were urged to slow down and be patient as congestion built up in some areas.
Police said Christchurch residents should stay off roads if at all possible, and text rather than phone.
Christchurch Hospital, the Princess Margaret Hospital and Hillmorton are all fully operational. Burwood is operating on emergency power.
There are no reports of damage and no injuries to staff or patients who were at the board's facilities at the time of the quake.
The DHB said people can access 24-hour non-emergency care through their general practice, and are asked to help keep the Emergency Department clear for genuine emergencies. The 111 service is operating normally for emergencies.
The Christchurch mayor said his heart breaks for Cantabrians shocked by a series of earthquakes this afternoon.
The first, a magnitude 5.8 tremor, struck at 1.50pm. Its focal point was at a depth of eight kilometres, 20km off the coast of Lyttelton.
Key: 'My heart goes out to the people of Christchurch'
Prime Minister John Key said Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, will be heading to Christchurch this afternoon to access the situation.
"My heart goes out to the people of Christchurch and Canterbury at this time," Mr Key said.
"However, residents can be confident that the authorities are onto the situation and government resources stand ready to assist wherever they are needed.
"The Government's resolve to work with the people of Christchurch and Canterbury to rebuild remains unchanged following today's two aftershocks."
Mayor Bob Parker has now booked to fly back to Christchurch from Taupo, where he was holidaying.
He told TVNZ he was getting a lot of reports in from the east of the city of minor damage.
"On the east there's more reports coming in of liquefaction, in Avondale ... and there's small collapses around riverbanks."
He said while initial reports tell of minor damage to the city, today's shake would have taken a large emotional toll on people.
"Many of them just sitting around and in tears. You just can't understand the ongoing stress."
"We were just getting over that feeling, I think, and it sets people back."
Chlorine had finally been removed from the waterways two weeks ago, and today's quake could have set infrastructure progress back, he said.
'Very violent... constant rolling'
Jacqui Taylor said she was working in the Lyttelton library when the first magnitude 5.8 quake hit.
"It was very violent, with constant rolling for a very long time, we left the building and people gathered in the main street. there were more aftershocks while we were in the street.
"I luckily made it through the tunnel and back home in Addington, feeling one more shake while i was in my car at the lights."
Power outages
Electricity distributor Orion reports power is out from the New Brighton area through to Shirley. It is thought 15,000 customers in the eastern suburbs including New Brighton and Dallington were without power. Electricity was also out in Springston in central Canterbury.
Orion said its crews were out assessing damage. It said it appeared power is out due to tripping caused by shaking rather than damage to equipment.
Neanwhile New Zealand Post said there will be no mail deliveries in Christchurch. The Christchurch Mail Centre has been evacuated as a precaution and will not re-open this evening.
The next scheduled mail deliveries following the statutory holidays will be December 28.
Emergency Operations Centre
The Christchurch City Council has established an Emergency Operations Centre in the city. There has been a rockfall behind containers at Scarborough, and liquefaction at Parklands, the council said.
Police are doing aerial reconnaissance to check for damage across the city.
All Council buildings will be closed until they can be assessed as safe to occupy. People should assume all Council buildings are closed until they can be assessed and declared safe.
Cantabrians are being warned that more aftershocks could be on the way before Christmas.
GNS: More aftershocks to come
GNS seismologist Ken Gledhill told TVNZ "this is part of a series of earthquakes that have been set off by what happened in September 2010.
"In the coming days the most likely scenario is that there will be a series of aftershocks in a similar location.
"This is just a reminder that this area is more active than what it was before September 2010."
He said GNS were doing the best they could with information and the situation in Christchurch.
- APNZ
By APNZ
via nzherald.co.nz
The Associated Press: Oil rises for 4th day, nears $100 a barrel
Oil rises for 4th day, nears $100 a barrelBy JONATHAN FAHEY, AP Energy Writer – 5 minutes ago
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices rose above $99 a barrel Thursday amid signs of growing U.S. crude demand and concerns about global supply.
Benchmark crude rose 73 cents to $99.40 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, which is used to price crude produced in many foreign countries and is an important feedstock for U.S. gasoline producers, rose 20 cents to $107.91 per barrel in London.
A series of positive reports in the U.S. suggested that the economy is improving. That has sent stock prices and oil prices higher this week. Crude prices are up for the fourth straight day.
Investors got a double-barrel of encouraging news Thursday, as the Labor Department said unemployment claims last week dropped to the lowest level in more than three and a half years, and a private report said leading economic indicators pointed to a strengthening economy.
On Tuesday, a report showed housing construction was picking up in the U.S. And on Wednesday, the Energy Information Administration reported a dramatic drop in the nation's oil supplies last week.
Gasoline demand was down 2.6 percent from last year through the first nine months of the year, according to government data. Drivers cut back amid high pump prices and worries about the economy.
"That's an astonishing amount," said Andrew Lipow, an independent oil analyst. He expects gasoline demand to fall slightly next year, though the decline won't be as great if the economy improves.
Demand for oil and gas grows with the economy as shippers move more goods and consumers drive and fly more.
Oil prices are also being pushed higher by threats to global supplies. Rising tensions between the West and Iran over Iran's nuclear ambitions are raising fears that oil from the world's fourth biggest producer may be kept from reaching markets in the coming weeks.
Oil traders also are concerned about political instability in Kazakhstan, which exports about 1.3 million barrels of oil per day, about 1.5 percent of world demand. The Central Asian nation has been battling political protests that have resulted in more than a dozen deaths in the last month.
Royal Dutch Shell PLC had to shut a large field off the coast of Nigeria because of a leak.
Oil prices have spent much of the year near $100 per barrel. That has pushed the retail price of gasoline to its highest annual average ever, $3.52 per gallon. On Thursday national average pump prices rose a penny to $3.22 per gallon according to AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.
In other energy trading, heating oil was virtually unchanged at $2.1933 per gallon, and gasoline futures rose 1 cent to $2.6324 per gallon. Natural gas was little changed at $3.158 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Copyright © 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
via google.com
Oil Rises for a Fourth Day as U.S. Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Decline - Bloomberg
Oil rose a fourth day in New York as the number of applications for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell to the lowest level since April 2008, bolstering optimism that economic growth will accelerate.
Futures advanced as much as 0.7 percent after the Labor Department said that jobless claims dropped by 4,000 to 364,000 last week. The median forecast of 45 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News projected an increase to 380,000. U.S. oil supplies declined the most in a decade last week, an Energy Department report showed yesterday.
“We’re in an uptrend and may have further to go,” said Tom Bentz, a director in New York with BNP Paribas Prime Brokerage Inc. “The inventory number yesterday surprised a lot of people and added to the rally. The jobless numbers today gave us an initial boost but we ran into resistance around $100.”
Crude oil for February delivery rose 80 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $99.47 a barrel at 9:38 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures touched $99.50, the highest level since Dec. 14. Prices have risen 8.9 percent this year after climbing 15 percent in 2010.
Brent oil for February settlement increased 43 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $108.14 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.
U.S. crude oil stockpiles fell 10.6 million barrels last week, the largest decrease since February 2001, yesterday’s Energy Department report showed.
$100 a Barrel
New York oil will average a record $100 a barrel next year as the U.S. averts recession, while Brent will decline from the 2011 mean, according to a Bloomberg News survey of analysts.
The $100 forecast for West Texas Intermediate oil, the U.S. benchmark, is based on the median of 27 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg, topping the all-time high of $99.75 set in 2008. WTI is on course to average $95 a barrel this year. Brent will average $109 next year, compared with $110.98 so far this year, a survey of 28 analysts showed.
Oil is up 25 percent this quarter, the biggest gain since the second quarter of 2009, as the European Union and the U.S. seek support from the Middle East and Asia for sanctions against Iran, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
EU nations, the U.S. and Asia-Pacific allies discussed possible measures in Rome on Dec. 20 and vowed to increase pressure on Iran to abandon a suspected nuclear weapons program, according to an Italian Foreign Ministry statement.
To contact the reporter on this story: Mark Shenk in New York at mshenk1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net
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via bloomberg.com
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