Canterbury Mayors Thank New Zealand

Canterbury mayors have written an open letter to the people of New Zealand. The letter is published below.

This weekend marks the one-year anniversary of the Greendale fault rupturing in Canterbury – the 7.1 magnitude earthquake being the start of what was to be a year of trauma, heartache and uncertainty for our residents.

Homes throughout the region were destroyed, communities devastated and people displaced by the event. For Christchurch, the worst was still to come in February 2011 when 181 lives would be lost and our Central City crippled by a 6.3 magnitude aftershock.

Everyone in Canterbury has been touched by what happened to our region. Yet our community has shown real strength and resilience to support each other and offer help wherever it was needed.

In its darkest hours Canterbury was blessed to be overwhelmed by support from throughout New Zealand and the globe. This came in many forms, from messages of support and practical, expert assistance on the ground to donations to financially support our residents and help rebuild our community. The level of support has been humbling.

To mark the anniversary, Canterbury is extending a heartfelt thanks to New Zealand for its compassion, support and generous donations to help rebuild our lives and our communities. To all those who supported us, please consider this a personal thank you from the residents of Canterbury.

Our grateful thanks also to the various emergency services - Police, New Zealand Fire Service and St John - and Urban Search and Rescue and New Zealand Defence Force who often put their own lives at risk to help support and protect our communities during each of the four events, and to the multitudes of groups such as the Red Cross, churches, the Farmy Army and Student Volunteer Army to name but a few.

Canterbury is indebted to the generosity and bravery of everyone who has helped our community.

Dame Margaret Bazley
Chair of Commissioners
Environment Canterbury

David Ayers
Mayor of Waimakariri

Kelvin Coe
Mayor of Selwyn

Bob Parker
Mayor of Christchurch

Download Thank You New Zealand (pdf 420Kb)