Lyttelton demolitions chance to move ahead

Today the programme of demolition in Lyttelton will start to make real progress. Lyttelton's iconic Volcano Cafe and Lava Bar were demolished last Friday and the Harbour Light Theatre, Empire Hotel and former No. 6 café will be demolished today and tomorrow.

This is an important step for the recovery effort in Lyttelton as many businesses dwarfed in the shadow of these unstable buildings will soon be able to reopen.

Over the weekend we had the third round of our community briefings. There was some news of set-backs in the Port Hills from Taylors Mistake right through to Princess Margaret Hospital in Cashmere. Significant land damage means that families are still unable to return to their homes in these areas and there was concern that residents are still without a robust time frame for action.

We were of course shaken by the largest aftershock since 22 February on Saturday afternoon. No additional houses were red stickered following the aftershock but there was a lot of property damage reported. People suffered lapses in power and water with water mains damaged.

There was damage to possessions with people starting to reassemble their homes only to have shelves and ornaments topple again. Broken windows were a chilling reminder of winter being close, with or without a home heating subsidy from the Government.

People are simply really, really tired and the cold is an overwhelming concern. There is another community briefing in Sydenham Park, 18 April, to expand on some of these issues.