When it hit I was in bed, I had been feeling really ill that day 2 months pregnant with poppet. As soon as it hit I knew what it was, some people say they heard it well before it happened, maybe I did subconsciously because in an instant I was at the door trying to get to my son. Later when I got back to my room a large wardrobe was over where I had been standing, I had moved before it did. At the door it get's really hard, everything is going everywhere, the floor is moving in waves and I find it hard to move, I'm in the corridor getting thrown from each side. My little man like many of his friends is having his afternoon nap, he is safe in his cot. The mind races to all the places he could have been.
My brother in law has saved the TV, I'm glad the toastie maker that has flown across the room hasn't hit him, the house is creaking and still swaying and aftershocks have already started, I notice I can barely hear my own voice over the roar around us. We head outside the roar is coming from our land, water and sand have risen up and our front lawn is a lake, the water has broken through the front fence and the church's fence next door swamping everywhere around us. It's lapping at the deck, we hope it doesn't get any higher.
My husband has got a text through he's on his way. Later I find out he was in a two story work shipping container having lunch, they were sure the whole thing was going to go and were all thrown off their chairs, he is glad that he was the one to bolt the container in rather than the apprentices. He races across town in a Ute, crossing over bits of old buildings to get to us.
The neighbors have come in their gumboots to check on us wading through the muddy waters, they are listening to the radio in their car, they tell us there have been deaths in the city, we can see the dust, we felt the violence of the shake, we know what they are telling us it true.
Texts are rushing backwards and forwards, between friends and family, from our city, our country and the world. Everyone has been reached everyone is OK. We are lucky.
We pack the car, pack our bags, grab the dog, petrol from the lawnmower, any cash.
The car is surround in mud, once the car is started we just keep going, through water and sand driving down the wrong side of the road, desperate to get away from the constant shaking and fear. We are just a few of many making an exodus, every service station has lines, every motel out of town a no vacancy sign.
What has it taught me....
Always have petrol in your car, and cash in your wallet, because if you loose power you loose petrol and you loose eftpos!
Kiddy locks on doors stop things breaking in earthquakes, shame they weren't locks on dresser containing the good crockery!
Just because a piece of furniture is low doesn't mean it won't topple....see my large low dresser above.
Earthquakes are a great way to get to know your neighbors if you didn't already
People are Amazing- we had people we didn't know cleaning our front lawn up, they saw a need and just mucked in, Inspiring.
For some more personal quake stories have a look at my friends sites-
outdamnkilos- this is my good friend Mel who I used to work with, the street she worked on has barely any building's left on it.
Knotty-
This is Ian whose wife was working in the partially collapsed Press building.
I miss you guys.
ReplyDeleteMiss you too
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