Otautahi earthquake forged new view for Maori

Ōtautahi has marked the tenth anniversary of the second Christchurch earthquake with a service at the city's national quake memorial.

The shallow 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck at 12:51pm on February 22, killing 185 people, damaging or destroying thousands of homes and buildings and changing lives forever.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told the service the earthquake affected people in complex and diverse ways.

For those who survived there were daily reminders – a fractured landscape, aftershocks, struggling friends and neighbours, and children with deep and unseen scars.

Ten years on there will be people still living their daily lives with the long shadow of that day.

Te Tai Tonga MP Rino Tirikatene says a positive outcome was the stronger relationships formed by the city with its mana whenua Ngāi Tahu and Māori at large.

"We know our marae stood up and were first to bring people in. That has formed the blueprint of what our marae and our iwi whānau are doing across the motu. The Māori community has a key role to play in emergency management, mobilising as we do and all getting in together," he says.

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