EARTHQUAKE

First of all, thank you for the lovely messages of concern I have been recieving from all around the world. I am in Wellington which is at the bottom of the North Island (for those of you who don't know) and Christchurch is in the South Island so it hasn't affected us here. Or should I say, the shaking itself hasn't affected us here. I think it is safe to say that all of NZ and further abroad is reeling from the devastating news and images coming out of one of our biggest cities. I was riveted by the coverage on television last night but then decided I needed to stop watching it as I was beginning to feel quite distressed which can't be good for a little baby who feels all my emotions in the womb. The 6.3 on the richter scale quake hit just before 1pm and the death toll so far stands at 65 and is expected to rise. It is a smaller quake than the first one which was a 7.2 and hit in September, but was at a very shallow depth of 5km so was far more violent than the first causing widespread destruction across the city.

You can read about it here:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/christchurch-earthquake/4692170/Christchurch-quake-Cries-from-the-rubble

My thoughts are with all of my readers who live in Christchurch or have family and friends in Christchurch. You have already had such a rough few months after the first quake and now this . . . such a devastating time of day for it to strike and I get teary just thinking about it. My heart goes out to you all.

HOW TO HELP

You can donate to victims of the earthquake at:

The Salvation Army: Freephone 0800 530 000 or online at www.salvationarmy.org.nz

Any ANZ Bank: Account number 01-1839-0188939-00

Any National Bank: Account number 06-0869-0548507-00