Prince visits Christchurch ruins
Source: Agencies |
March 18, 2011, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
BRITAIN'S Prince William got a firsthand look yesterday at the destruction wrought by last month's earthquake in New Zealand, praising the work search teams had done and adding that he wished he'd been able to help.
William was escorted through the city of Christchurch, where the wreckage of collapsed buildings still lies piled up in areas. The downtown remains sealed off as workers dismantle unstable rubble and shore up weakened and wobbly buildings after a 6.3-magnitude quake on February 22 that toppled or badly damaged thousands of buildings and killed at least 166 people.
"The scale of it is unbelievable," the prince said while visiting Latimer Square, a park in the center of town that became an emergency medical depot after the quake.
He visited other sites in town, including the city's iconic Anglican cathedral that had its tower collapse in the temblor, and other badly damaged buildings.
"It really does bring it home to see it leaning like that," he said, adding that the past six months had been a "horrendous time for disasters."
The Christchurch earthquake was followed last week by the massive quake and tsunami disaster that is still unfolding in Japan. William will travel to Australia next, where he will visit areas hit by the country's worst flooding in decades.
Police Superintendent Dave Cliff said yesterday the official death toll from the Christchurch quake remained at 166, but was expected to rise to 182. Workers believe they have pulled all bodies from the rubble, but the final tally is still not known because they have struggled to identify some body parts.
William was escorted through the city of Christchurch, where the wreckage of collapsed buildings still lies piled up in areas. The downtown remains sealed off as workers dismantle unstable rubble and shore up weakened and wobbly buildings after a 6.3-magnitude quake on February 22 that toppled or badly damaged thousands of buildings and killed at least 166 people.
"The scale of it is unbelievable," the prince said while visiting Latimer Square, a park in the center of town that became an emergency medical depot after the quake.
He visited other sites in town, including the city's iconic Anglican cathedral that had its tower collapse in the temblor, and other badly damaged buildings.
"It really does bring it home to see it leaning like that," he said, adding that the past six months had been a "horrendous time for disasters."
The Christchurch earthquake was followed last week by the massive quake and tsunami disaster that is still unfolding in Japan. William will travel to Australia next, where he will visit areas hit by the country's worst flooding in decades.
Police Superintendent Dave Cliff said yesterday the official death toll from the Christchurch quake remained at 166, but was expected to rise to 182. Workers believe they have pulled all bodies from the rubble, but the final tally is still not known because they have struggled to identify some body parts.
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