Woooaaahh earthquake 2016-11-14

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#1671418 15-Nov-2016 15:20

tdgeek:
Stats NZ has severe structural damage, even though its apparently just a few years old.

That's the building I referred to earlier, I have a son that works there. It's only a new building but built on the same ground as the BNZ.

He has been told they won't return there for at least a year if ever. Dammed lucky the quake wasn't durning a working day.

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#1671419 15-Nov-2016 15:25

MikeB4:
tdgeek:

Stats NZ has severe structural damage, even though its apparently just a few years old.

That's the building I referred to earlier, I have a son that works there. It's only a new building but built on the same ground as the BNZ.

He has been told they won't return there for at least a year if ever. Dammed lucky the quake wasn't durning a working day.

I thought so, pancaked was mentioned. There may be controversy there, its 4 years old? Post Chch? Thats a worry someone will have to deal with

plus the inevitable media bees around a honeypot that will go with it

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#1671437 15-Nov-2016 16:01

freitasm:

Our CBD office was closed today for assessment... It will be open tomorrow although I don't trust the old building that much.

When the quake happened in Chch we had engineers going around all the commercial properties and within 10 mins would slap on a green, yellow or red sticker.

They eventually found out that the inspection process was no good and reinspected everything.

Seriously, how many engineers are around vs how many buildings therefore how thorough are their assessments?

Anyone knows?

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#1671449 15-Nov-2016 16:13

tdgeek:

MikeB4:
tdgeek:

Stats NZ has severe structural damage, even though its apparently just a few years old.

That's the building I referred to earlier, I have a son that works there. It's only a new building but built on the same ground as the BNZ.

He has been told they won't return there for at least a year if ever. Dammed lucky the quake wasn't durning a working day.

I thought so, pancaked was mentioned. There may be controversy there, its 4 years old? Post Chch? Thats a worry someone will have to deal with

plus the inevitable media bees around a honeypot that will go with it

i worked in the stats building for some years and remember moving into it which was some time in 2006

DarthKermit

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#1671450 15-Nov-2016 16:18

The Herald says the building was opened in 2005. Still, no excuse for a quite new building to fail like this.

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#1671454 15-Nov-2016 16:25

DarthKermit:

The Herald says the building was opened in 2005. Still, no excuse for a quite new building to fail like this.

Fair enough, I thought I read 4 years somewhere, my mistake.

Fred99

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#1671459 15-Nov-2016 16:32

The engineering going in to some buildings in Chch is astounding. In particular the justice precinct and new hospital - the objective being that the buildings don't just need to be "survivable" for occupants, but the buildings must be able to remain operational. The cost is horrendous. They also scare me a bit - as the amount of bracing, size of structural components, the foundations, everything is so overwhelmingly strongly engineered it brings to mind how relatively flimsy most buildings are and if that's needed then I shudder to think what the event they're being built to survive will be like.

In some models for the Alpine Fault event, then the impact on Chch buildings shouldn't be much worse than the effect of yesterday's quake on Wgtn. The fault(s) which stuffed the place in 2010/11 have >10,000 year recurrence - so they're done and dusted. There could be other unknown faults similar to the Greendale/Port Hills capable of unleashing M6 or so, but at least they aren't right underneath us.

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#1671460 15-Nov-2016 16:34

Something tells me the lawyers are going to get very rich from the Wellington Customs, Stats & BNZ buildings.

* Should the Council have zoned the land for medium-rise (eight storeys IIRC) development?
* Did the Architects and Structural Engineers do their job right?
* Did the piling contractors, site engineers and building contractor do their bits right?
* Did the Council's Inspectors inspect sufficiently thoroughly?
* Did any of the responsible parties misrepresent (deliberately or otherwise) to the Inspectors any relevant matters?
* What are the building owner's responsibilities to the tenants (including Stats), and did they discharge them properly?

This could run and run and run

And we'll end up paying the bill either through rates, taxes or insurance premiums.
Sigh

Fred99

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#1671489 15-Nov-2016 16:48

joker97:

freitasm:

Our CBD office was closed today for assessment... It will be open tomorrow although I don't trust the old building that much.

When the quake happened in Chch we had engineers going around all the commercial properties and within 10 mins would slap on a green, yellow or red sticker.

They eventually found out that the inspection process was no good and reinspected everything.

Seriously, how many engineers are around vs how many buildings therefore how thorough are their assessments?

Anyone knows?

That came down in part to what we discussed above, there was a sense of complacency, Chch took a near direct hit from a strong M7.1 quake and survived very well indeed. It was in terms of risk, the worst that was quite realistically expected to be inflicted by the EQ gods - and we'd passed the test.

So why bother having engineers thoroughly going over plans, taking core samples and doing other investigative work that would have required "destructive" testing removing cladding or internal linings etc to inspect structural elements? As well as availability of qualified engineers, it's expensive - especially when the buildings are a bit older, there aren't records, drawings etc.

What happened wasn't supposed to happen, and then it did.

The ramifications weren't just on NZ. There had been hints that relatively small events could cause far more extensive damage than thought, from Kobe in Japan and Loma Prieta in California, extremely high peak ground accelerations had been recorded - with corresponding damage. Chch with a $50 billion bill and significant death toll sent ripples out.

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#1671491 15-Nov-2016 16:58

PolicyGuy:

And we'll end up paying the bill either through rates, taxes or insurance premiums.

it'll be interesting to see if the present quake sequence and the apparent "waking up" of seismicity in NZ will have on insurance.

After Chch all of the global reinsurers were talking about pulling all reinsurance for EQ from NZ. Gerry jumped on a plane and went to London to meet with them. To his credit, he probably saved the day.

If we do get another event causing damage in the tens of billions of $$$, I suspect NZ will be in the cold. The local insurers can't afford to carry the risk, and EQC coffers are empty.

Not sure how the banks would react - but probably not very generously - to the concept that they're exposed to considerable risk.

freitasm

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#1671508 15-Nov-2016 18:20

Vodafone update:

UPDATE @ 6:00 pm Tuesday 15 November

Yesterday’s earthquake impacted mobile and fixed line services in the lower North Island and upper South Island. Most of these issues have now been resolved and there is only one remaining cell site that we are working to reinstate. The site in Waiau will be connected tomorrow to a temporary femtocell over satellite link to provide temporary coverage for people in this area.

Downer has started work to assess the extent of the damage to the fibre cable that runs along SH1 in Kaikoura. Six breaks have been identified and work is expected to continue for some weeks. Access and safety is a priority here as the damage to roads is extensive and the risk of further landslides is high.

As a priority, teams are working to provide additional resilience for the South Island utilising an undersea fibre optic cable that links between the North and South Islands and comes ashore just outside of Kaikoura for a power boost (Aqualink cable). By linking to this cable, Vodafone, as well as Spark and Chorus, will be able to restore most broadband and mobile services for customers in Kaikoura and some surrounding areas. More here Work started on this project today and updates will be provided as the team progresses.

Vodafone services are currently running on the Aqualink cable. Alternative options are currently being investigated to interconnect with Spark and Chorus, or Transpower and Vocus to restore diversity to the network.

The severe weather and continued aftershocks have presented additional challenges for us in Wellington. Some customers in the suburbs of Karori and Kelburn may be experiencing a loss of fixed line services. We are working to restore these as quickly as possible.

We are also working closely to assist a number of customers who provide critical services to New Zealand (banking, emergency services, and health services for example) to relocate and remain connected.

Every time an aftershock greater than 5.0 occurs, we are required to re-inspect our buildings and seek clearance before allowing access to staff or the public. As a result, a number of Vodafone retail stores in Wellington will remain closed until we have the green light for access including our Queensgate and Lambton Quay stores. Our Porirua retail store and the Porirua Mall have been impacted by flooding and are closed for business until further notice. Our Cuba Street store will be open tomorrow.

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MikeB4

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#1671529 15-Nov-2016 19:13

Just had to go into Welly and back left at 5 just getting out now, what a mess.

DarthKermit

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#1671532 15-Nov-2016 19:17

^^^ Has the flooding subsided now?

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#1671537 15-Nov-2016 19:21

There is a building on Molesworth street at risk of collapse

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#1671543 15-Nov-2016 19:32

61 Molesworth St.

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