2011 Christchurch earthquake

2011 Christchurch earthquake
Damaged Catholic cathedral two months after the earthquake
2011 Christchurch earthquake is located in New Zealand
2011 Christchurch earthquake
UTC time2011-02-21 23:51:42
ISC event16168897
USGS-ANSSComCat
Local date22 February 2011 (2011-02-22)
Local time12:51 p.m. NZDT
Magnitude6.2 Mw(GCMT)[2]
6.1 Mw(USGS)[1]
Depth5 km (3.1 mi)
Epicentre43°34′59″S 172°40′48″E / 43.583°S 172.680°E / -43.583; 172.680[1]
Port Hills near Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand
Areas affectedNew Zealand
Max. intensityMMI XI (Extreme)
Peak acceleration1.51 g[3][4]
Tsunami3.5 m (11 ft) tsunami waves in the Tasman Lake, following quake-triggered glacier calving from Tasman Glacier[5][6]
LandslidesSumner and Redcliffs
Casualties185 deaths[7][8]
1,500–2,000 injuries, 164 serious[9]

A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. local time (23:51 UTC, 21 February).[2][10] The Mw6.2 (ML6.3) earthquake struck the Canterbury region in the South Island, centred 6.7 kilometres (4.2 mi) south-east of the central business district.[11] It caused widespread damage across Christchurch, killing 185 people[7][8] in New Zealand's fifth-deadliest disaster. Scientists classified it as an intraplate earthquake and potentially an aftershock of the 2010 Canterbury earthquake.

Christchurch's central city and eastern suburbs were badly affected, with damage to buildings and infrastructure already weakened by the 2010 Canterbury earthquake and its aftershocks. Significant liquefaction affected the eastern suburbs, producing around 400,000 tonnes of silt. The earthquake was felt across the South Island and parts of the lower and central North Island. While the initial quake only lasted for approximately 10 seconds, the damage was severe because of the location and shallowness of the earthquake's focus in relation to Christchurch as well as previous quake damage. Subsequent population loss saw the Christchurch main urban area fall behind the Wellington equivalent, to decrease from second- to third-most populous area in New Zealand. Adjusted for inflation, the 2010–2011 Canterbury earthquakes caused over $44.8 billion in damages, making it New Zealand's costliest natural disaster and the 21st-most-expensive disaster in history.[12][13][14]

  1. ^ a b "M 6.1 – South Island of New Zealand". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on 17 June 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  2. ^ a b "M 6.2 Christchurch Tue, Feb 22 2011: Technical". GeoNet. Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  3. ^ Goto, Hiroyuki; Kaneko, Yoshihiro; Naguit, Muriel; Young, John (5 January 2021). "Records of Extreme Ground Accelerations during the 2011 Christchurch Earthquake Sequence Contaminated by a Nonlinear, Soil–Structure Interaction". Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America. 111 (2): 704–722. Bibcode:2021BuSSA.111..704G. doi:10.1785/0120200337. S2CID 233531749.
  4. ^ "Deadly Christchurch quake's record ground-shaking lower than first thought". New Zealand: Stuff. 15 February 2021. Archived from the original on 16 February 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  5. ^ "Ice breaks off glacier after Christchurch quake". Australia: ABC News. 22 February 2011. Archived from the original on 26 February 2011. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
  6. ^ "Earthquake causes glacier to calve". New Zealand: Stuff. 23 February 2011. Archived from the original on 23 April 2011. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
  7. ^ a b "Official quake toll rises to 185". New Zealand: Stuff. 9 February 2012. Archived from the original on 13 March 2012. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
  8. ^ a b "List of deceased – Christchurch earthquake". New Zealand Police. 8 September 2011. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 26 December 2011.
  9. ^ "Earthquake death toll reaches 113". New Zealand: Stuff. 25 February 2011. Archived from the original on 24 May 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
  10. ^ "M 6.2 Christchurch Tue, Feb 22 2011: Details". GeoNet. Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  11. ^ "M 6.1 – South Island of New Zealand: Regional information". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on 18 June 2019. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  12. ^ "Christchurch rebuild to cost $10b more – Story – Politics – 3 News". 14 October 2013. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  13. ^ Rosanes, Mark. "New Zealand's costliest natural disasters in the past decade". insurancebusinessmag.com. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  14. ^ "The Canterbury rebuild five years on from the Christchurch earthquake" (PDF). Reserve Bank of New Zealand. February 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2024.

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