92nd anniversary

This fridge magnet belonged to my late father. He was just short of his 8th birthday and at school when the 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck at 10.17 a.m. on June 17th 1929. 17 people died in the township of about 300 people. The women and children were taken to Nelson where they were looked after for months while the men stayed behind to rebuild. Dad often talked about the tough life they had afterwards and the onset of world economic depression in the 1930's. In comparison we now live in far better circumstances even allowing for the devastating effects of Covid 19