A documentary about the 1968 Inangahua earthquake by Jim Henderson. It includes eye-witness accounts by numerous people recalling the devastation caused.
First to speak is Fred Jackson, whose wife and mother-in-law were killed, and whose home was destroyed. He talks about his experience of the earthquake itself, and his actions immediately after the event. He says the rumbling of the earth moving sounded extremely close, but found out later that the movement was 22 miles underground. Looking back, he views it as a straightforward disaster. He lost everything. He has no real plan for the future but has an idea to buy a caravan and travel around because it gives him somewhere to hang his clothes.
Next is Janet Meikle, who describes caring for her children in the aftermath of the quake. They wrapped the children in blankets and sang songs and then took items out of the damaged house to make a living room and cook food on the lawn outside. They were evacuated that afternoon.
John Lowery is an earthquake damage assessor from Invercargill. His task is to assess the damage to property and estimate a dollar value. Getting around the area has been a challenge - they have even had to charter jet boats. He describes the difficulty of balancing the emotional and financial upset.
Beryl O'Regan describes cleaning up the mess in her house after the earthquake.
Betty Reid and Jim Brown of the Salvation Army describe the scene at the Inangahua Hotel and school, both of which have had to be abandoned. Nothing has been cleaned up yet and there are poignant images such as a home-made stuffed dog in the school house.
Mrs Meikle is interviewed again in the street, on her way back from the post office. They returned to Inangahua a week ago and are learning to cope with the tremors. She says the children do not seem to be afraid at night and when they happen during the day, they play at jumping around.
Jim O'Malley of the Inangahua Store is cleaning out the fridge which has gone rusty. He advises other storekeepers to thoroughly check their insurance policies and make sure they are covered - he has learned this the hard way.
Doreen Harvey runs the Post Office. The office was moved from town to the camp because the original site is in danger of a land slip.
Tom Southern runs the garage, which is back in business. His home is not safe and needs to be pulled down and rebuilt. He and his family are living in a caravan in Reefton.
Constable Roy Nixon comments on the job of the police - looking after property and being vigilant of accidents on the damaged roads.
Roy Inwood, a farmer, talks about the condition of the fields. Many fences are damaged. Water and sand came up from the ground, coupled with high rainfall in June means that there is a lot of standing water on the ground. Stock panicked during the earthquake. One farmer lost six cows when the hillside slipped and they dropped into a canyon. Despite this, he feels farmers are quite confident in the future.
Eileen Inwood says geologists found the markings on the wall of the swing trajectory of some pictures in her bedroom very interesting.
Kevin O'Regan is one of the construction workers reinstating the road. He says they are working very long hours. Everybody is doing their share of work.
Frank Cocksell is working on the railway line and describes the work.
W. Banks is reinstating the telegraph poles. Much of the line has been laid by helicopter.
In Reefton, Civil Defence and relief and aid is being coordinated. Rev. Harold Pomeroy of the Inangahua Earthquake Appeal fund comments. Ada Hardy, welfare officer of Civil Defence, and a county councillor, organised billeting and first aid before the disaster happened. Women whose names were on her list turned up for duty to help. Tom Moore, County Clerk and Civil Defence Controller talks about how things fell into place as people were cooperative and got on with their jobs. They appointed a Press Release Officer who could deal with all press matters. He suggests a senior post and telegraph engineer be posted to all future disasters to take up this position.
Rev. Michael Smart, vicar of Reefton, is liaison officer for the EQC. He is glad the Commission asked someone to act as a liaison officer as it shows they were considering the human aspect as well as the insurance claims. He says all the surveyors have impressed him by showing empathy like this. He reflects that disasters like this bring out the humanity in people.
Terry Hogue, Officer in Charge of the Ministry of Works, Inangahua, has the last word and sums up his philosophical views on the quake.