Cabinet will discuss today what aid it will give to Canterbury residents facing a huge rebuilding effort and ongoing disruption as schools, and many public buildings and businesses remain closed following Saturday's massive earthquake.
Hundreds of people spent their second night away from home in aid shelters in Christchurch after their houses were destroyed in the pre-dawn 7.1 magnitude quake centred about 40km away.
The state of emergency in the city will be reassessed today, but Mayor Bob Parker believed it may need to be continued.
Many people will never return to their homes which were so badly damaged they will have to be demolished. For others, the repairs could take weeks or months.
After the initial shock, it was dawning on people they would have to find somewhere else to live, and continuing aftershocks were keeping many people on edge.
The trauma was reducing many people to tears, said Yanni Tromp yesterday, who was running the Red Cross emergency centre at Linwood College.
"We see them in all sorts from very strong people who stand up and help others to people who become nervous and are not really capable of thinking rationally for a little while."
High winds hit the region overnight, but were not as strong as had been feared, while concerns remained that some areas could be flooded.
"Stopbanks in some areas have been weakened by the earthquake and if we do get flooding, which we could get with this rain, then there could be issues," Civil Defence duty manager James Thompson told Radio New Zealand.
About 150 people were evacuated from Riverlands Holiday Park near Kaiapoi due to fears the Waimakariri River could breach a weakened stopbank.
Much of the central Christchurch remained cordoned off and under curfew overnight, but engineers have made progress inspecting an estimated 500 damaged buildings and parts of the downtown area have reopened.
Buildings were being colour-coded as they were checked for soundness: green for sound, red for dangerous, and yellow for having structural problems "but people can get in and get out", Mr Parker said.
Business owners will be able to get inside the cordon to check businesses and buildings today, but it will not be possible for many to do business. Panes of glass were seen falling from damaged buildings yesterday, and falling debris remained a concern.
"I did hear that Ballantynes (department store) ... had lost $10,000 worth of crystal. If that's an example, there is going to be a lot of business damage, and a lot of business disruption," said Peter Townsend of the Canterbury Employers Chamber of Commerce.
The Department of Labour advised employers to get expert advice about safety and security in their buildings, and ensure there was proper sanitation.
Business owners and managers were required by law to provide a safe workplace, but employees also had a responsibility for ensuring their own safety, and had the right to refuse work they considered unsafe.
"This is an unusual situation, and much of it is probably not covered by employment agreements," Department of Labour southern regional manager Sheila McBreen-Kerr said.
Cabinet is to discuss aid for the region, and appoint someone to oversee the ongoing claims and repairs. Up to $600,000 can be distributed automatically.
Estimates put the cost of repairs at $2 billion, with claims from at least 100,000 households to cost about $1b, but it would be some time before the final amount was known.
However, rebuilding could create a much-needed economic upturn for Canterbury contractors and tradesmen who have been struggling for work since the recession.
Visitors were urged to stay away for at least a week, unless absolutely necessary.
Bus services will be suspended today because of damage to roads.
Most schools remain off limits for at least the next two days, under the Civil Defence Act, but an earlier notice that all public buildings are to be closed until an engineering inspection was completed has been withdrawn.
That was because some businesses provided essential services and it was critical that property owners were able to make their properties safe, resume business as soon as possible and protect the safety of staff and the public, Civil Defence said.
The city's landmark heritage buildings are relatively unscathed, but assessments will continue.
Up to 20 percent of the city had no drinkable water, and householders were being advised to boil drinking water.
Among offers of aid from around the country, the Red Cross has sent blankets from Auckland, tarpaulins were arriving from out of town, water was sent by train, and support is arriving for police and other emergency staff.
Millions of dollars has been pledged to a mayoral relief fund, and agencies such as Save The Children and Red Cross have launched appeals.
NZPA