Quake updates: Govt's financial package

4:25pm Residents are being asked not to read too much into reports of engineers re-visiting Christ Church Cathedral this afternoon. Dean Peter Beck says the inspection was purely precautionary.

What appear to be minor cracks are being checked this afternoon as a precaution. The cathedral was inspected on Saturday after the initial quake and received a green slip, meaning it was safe.

4:10pm GNS Science have released a video of the 22km fault line in Christchurch.

3:20pm The Government is putting last minute touches on a financial support plan for Christchurch residents whose work has been disrupted by the quake.

"We're just in the final process of buttoning it down, but quite a lot of good work has been completed this morning and we're getting quite close," Mr Key told reporters.

Labour leader Phil Goff praised the National Government’s efforts towards the quake and agreed that people temporarily without work needed assistance.

"I think New Zealanders want us to err on the side of generosity," he said.

John Key's Parliament address

2:40pm John Key’s press secretary has released a transcript of the PM’s afternoon address to Parliament.

In the address, Mr Key expresses his gratitude for the community spirit shown by, and towards, the people of Christchurch.

“It was a frightening experience for everyone, but it has proven one thing: that in the worst of times, you see the best of New Zealand,” he says.

Mr Key says it was “a miracle” that no one was killed, considering the quake was as strong at the tremor that levelled Haiti, killing approximately 230,000 people.

See a map of where exactly the quake hit, and what suburbs were damaged

He says the $5 million quake fund is just a start, and the Government is prepared to step up financially to assist the region.

The Prime Minister is currently on a flight to Christchurch to visit the welfare centres and assess new damage from recent aftershocks.

2:15pm The Department of Labour has posted important information for businesses that have discovered their hazardous substances storage has ruptured or spills have occurred at their sites in Christchurch.

For major spills, the Department says the Fire Service should be notified immediately along with Environment Canterbury. The business should follow its HSNO Emergency Response Plan.

For minor spills, Environment Canterbury should also be contacted, the Emergency Response Plan should also be followed. Contain the spill, secure the site, have the chemical inventory handy and ensure approved handlers are available on-site.

Aftershocks

2.10pm Dr Warwick Smith of GNS Science says the aftershocks since the earthquake are following a normal pattern and are likely to continue for weeks, but becoming less frequent.

With the continuing aftershocks, people should be very careful about being in or near damaged buildings, because further damage could be caused.

1:15pm A new Canterbury quake website has been set up to assist residents with support information and services.

Efforts to restore power, water

12:57pm Emergency services say around 2000 homes are still without power today, with 400-500 contractors working to repair the outages.

The numbers are a vast improvement from Saturday night, where an estimated 20,000 Canterbury homes were without power.

One hundred and eighty city council staff are also working to restore water and control the wastewater infrastructure in areas affected.

Sixty streets currently have their water mains shut off. Residents in those streets are being asked to boil their water as a precaution.

12:35pm Police have moved the checkpoint for entry into central Christchurch after further destabilisation of near-by buildings from overnight aftershocks.

The checkpoint has moved from the corner of Cashel and Madras streets to Manchester and Worcester street corners.

Police are asking the public to remain vigilant.

Bailout for uninsured

12:15pm The Government has announced further details to its bailout plan for uninsured Christchurch residents.

It is estimated up to 10 percent of Canterbury residents whose properties were damaged by the quake are uninsured.

John Key announced yesterday that the Government will consider assistance when “genuine hardship” is demonstrated.

Insurance Council chief executive Chris Ryan said today that compassion was needed given the exceptional circumstances of the quake.

"We can't just ignore them. This is an exceptional time, and it's a time where we need to help everybody."

Estimates for overall repairs range from $1B to $2B, with claims from at least 100,000 households expected.

Engineers inspect damaged tracks

11:49am KiwiRail engineers are currently inspecting railway lines throughout Christchurch, after further disruption to services overnight.

Early morning aftershocks caused more damage to tracks, including further damage to the Midland Line near Rolleston.

KiwiRail expects the rail services to be back up and running by this afternoon, depending on the degree of repairs required.

The Main North Line near Kaiapoi is still closed due to rising river levels. A decision on the line will be made later this afternoon.

KiwiRail says the TranzAlpine line from Christchurch to Greymouth will likely resume tomorrow, although speed restrictions will be in place within the earthquake zone.

11:34am The Salvation Army has moved into its second phase of quake relief. An assessment team has been setup in Christchurch to help support families whose income has been affected by work disruption due to the quake.

“Many of the people we are seeing who have had to escape their homes are traumatised and fearful,” says Salvation Army spokesman Major Robbie Ross.

“To compound the emotional shock, many families will have their incomes cut-off or significantly reduced and this is a major social concern.”

Storage facilities are also being setup for food and goods donated by companies.

Quake in Napier

11:05am A quake of 5.2 magnitude has been felt near Napier, following minor tremors in the region around 10am this morning.

The shallow quake was 15km deep, and located 90km south of Hastings. There are no initial reports of serious damage.

Prisoners transferred

10:31am Inmates at Christchurch Men’s and Women’s prisons are to be temporarily transferred to Otago and Auckland, after the quake effected prison water supplies.

Lance Alexander, acting manager for the prison service support, says although the two prisons are operating safely, the water pressure for sprinklers was a concern.

The Men’s prison inmates will be bussed down to Otago Corrections Facility and the women will be flown up to Auckland Region Women’s Corrections Facility.

Rolleston Men’s Prison was not affected by the weekend’s quakes, or subsequent aftershocks.

Key cancels Europe trip

10:26am John Key has told 3 News political editor Duncan Garner that he cancelled his UK trip because he felt Christchurch was still unsafe, especially with the aftershocks through the night.

He said he wanted to oversee events in Christchurch at a vulnerable time.

Do you agree with Key’s decision? Let us know here.

He will inform the palace soon.

Those who have been made unemployed due to the earthquake will also not face the usual stand-down period to collect their unemployment benefit. An announcement will be made on this in the afternoon.

The Government is also facing questions over whether struggling small businesses will receive subsidies to tide them over.

The Prime Minister also revealed a welfare package designed to give compensation to workers who are not being paid at the moment.

9:42am John Key has cancelled his trip to Europe to visit the Queen and British Prime Minister David Cameron, scheduled for the end of the week

Mr Key is due to arrive in Christchurch today at 4:30pm where he will visit the welfare centres at Linwood High and Addington Raceway, as well as meet with the region's mayors.

The third welfare centre setup at Burnside High School was closed this morning after suffering damage from aftershocks overnight. People have been moved to the Addington centre.

9:17am Christchurch residents might have to quench their cleanup thirst with water for now. Lion Nathan’s brewery sustained heavy damage from the quake, with stocks short on Canterbury Draught, Guinness, Beck’s and Macs Craft. The company says they will be shifting reserve stocks around the country to counter the short supply.

Building consent issues

9:03am

New Earthquake Minister Gerry Brownlee spoke to Marcus Lush on RadioLIVE this morning.

He will be based in Christchurch during his mission and divide his work between Wellington and Christchurch.

“There are no magic wands here… there is an enormous task for reconstruction,” he says.

According to Mr Brownlee, central Government can speed up the consent process for repair and rebuild jobs. Without a faster system it would take three years to give consent to all the work needed.

He says he wants to ensure integrity and quality of build is maintained.

He will also act fast to restore confidence in the water supply. Mr Parker and other local mayors have expressed a strong desire for this and the Govt can make sure the equipment is available to get the sewerage system working again.

He also said that Christchurch MPs have been given leave from Parliament to stay in their constituencies for the next few weeks.

In the longer haul he will chair an earthquake committee which he says should last several years.

Businesses open

8:44am Several more areas in the central CBD have been reopened to businesses and the public this morning. Police are still advising the public to only venture into the central city if necessary.

8:30am The overnight aftershocks caused new cracks in the Christchurch domestic terminal, forcing some national flights to leave from the international terminal. Engineers were called in this morning to assess the damage. The domestic terminal has since been reopened.

7:17am One hundred homes in the suburb of Bexley were evacuated overnight, swelling the number of people taking refuge in the city's welfare centres.

6:35am Gerry Brownlee has been appointed Minister for Earthquake Recovery.

6:20am Some much-needed good news for southern Metallica fans – the band's shows on September 21 and 22 are still on. The CBS Arena is being assessed for damage, but at this stage it appears it's emerged relatively unscathed.

Aftershocks

5:50am Aftershocks have continued to rock Christchurch overnight, including three above 5 on the Richter scale; there is concern that reports of the damage have been exaggerated, leading some to believe all business and commerce in the city is now over; and scientists have deduced the previously unknown fault that caused the damage had not ruptured for at least 16,000 years.

Prime Minister visits Christchurch

5:00am Prime Minister John Key is travelling to Christchurch today to meet with Canterbury Mayors before visiting welfare shelters and rural areas. He will still be making a planned visit to the UK to meet with the Queen and new UK Prime Minister David Cameron later in the week.

Mr Key has announced that the Government will give $5 million to the Earthquake Relief Fund, set up for hardship cases. The fund already has $6m in it, with The Warehouse, BNZ, Westpac, Fonterra and Fletcher Building giving $1m each to relief activities, while other banks and companies have also pledged large amounts. There will also be $94m available from the emergency work fund for road repairs.

A state of emergency will remain in place today as aftershocks continued to regularly rumble through the region and the clean up continues.

Public bus services are to resume today but commuters have been warned to expect delays. The 51 to New Brighton and 480 to Kainga have been cancelled until further notice.

Schools still closed

Schools, kindergartens and early childhood centres have been closed until at least Wednesday, likely for at least a week.

“Safety is paramount and the time will be used for the ongoing assessments to ensure school buildings are safe and to make sure water and sanitation is clean in school grounds," says Karen Sewell of the Ministry of Education.

All schools will be inspected by the end of today.

Classes at the University of Otago's Christchurch campus have been cancelled this week. There has been no major structural damage but there are "significant internal cleaning needs" a spokesperson said.

The cordon around quake-damaged central Christchurch was reduced yesterday. The area from Gloucester to Armagh Streets was reopened.

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