Bloody hell ...

[blamebrampton]

In times of ghastliness, it can be wrong but therapeutic to laugh. Which is how I explain my reaction to watching the NZ news covering earthquake evacuees arriving in Auckland. Air NZ has dropped prices and are running extra flights so that people can get out of Christchurch if they want or need to, and family members can get back in. Governments

Comments

[blythely]

If it's not already your day job, I hope you consider a career in kindly disaster reporting. I don't know how you do it, but you tell the important facts about these horrible situations without any intrusive sense of self and yet it's very personal.

I'm pleased your f&f are all okay. Mine too.

[blamebrampton]

When I was a baby journo we were taught that our twin responsibilities were to tell the story in a way that the reader would connect with it and understand quickly what mattered, and to treat the subject with the respect we would wish in their place. I've tried to stick to these rules, because they are tried, tested and reliable. When the media loses sight of them, bad things can happen.

And I have to say the only good thing about being in homemag world rather than back in news is that my day job has zero disaster reporting in it now. There's nothing more horrible than standing by impotently as people have the worst day of their lives, then asking how old the victim was.

Very, very glad your people are all well. I read a post from a friend in Japan marvelling at how small the death toll seemed to be and was mid-boggle before I realised that if looked at one way, that could be true. But looked at through eyes set to a New Zealand scale, it's still awful.

[bk7brokemybrain]

What a great post. Thank you. I hope all your friends are ok in the end.

[blamebrampton]

House damage seems to be all that has happened to my friends over there -- including one lovely woman who had just finished the repairs after the last earthquake. Poor dears.

[winnett]

I don't remember what you do for a living, but you should write these posts up and send them to magazines. You've a great storytelling knack for news events.

Thanks for sharing with us.

[blamebrampton]

I escaped news and run a food and craft mag, which is a much easier gig in terms of regular heartbreak. Worrying about my friends is bad enough!

[unomesowell]

If that doesn't put my petty grievances into perspective nothing will. Thank you. I am grateful your family is safe and I hope the missing are soon returned safely to theirs.

[blamebrampton]

I was going to say they're my friends, but I do think of a lot of them as family, albeit distant. Sadly, hopes are very faded for the remaining missing. It's just awful. And yes, my week of annoyances suddenly became wholly trivial, too.

[adores_draco]

It's always enjoyable to read well-written articles by a talented journalist. Even when the news are sad. Thank you.

I'm glad your friends are safe.

I was so relieved last September when nobody died during the earthquake. Seeing pictures of the ruined buildings and streets was bad enough. This time I was at work when I heard about the new earthquake. Seeing that beautiful cathedral so badly damaged was awful. I read about the lost lives and bodies on the streets but for some reason seeing the church made it more real. I saw that building daily while I visited Christchurch years ago. It was heartwarming to read about people helping each other. I hope they can find more survivors in the buildings as soon as possible.

I read that several Finnish backpackers are still among the people who haven't been reached because of the bad connections. I hope their families and friends soon get good news from NZ.

[blamebrampton]

I hope that the Finns were some of the many tourists who found themselves without phones and laptops, but safe nonetheless. I always love the fact that there are so many people from the Baltic and Scandinavia in New Zealand -- my best Swedish friends live there.

And yes, it is simply awful to see the city like that. Places that looked so strong and solid, just crumbling.