by Ellen Harvey, Harness Racing Communications

Freehold, NJ — The earthquake that hit the length and breadth of New Zealand earlier this week with a 6.3 rating had reverberations to the U.S. harness racing community. News of the quake was received in the U.S. on Monday night.

Kiwi expat Kelvin Harrison, a native of Methven, 50 miles southwest of Christchurch, was able to reach his family and confirm that all are OK. According to the Associated Press, at least 75 people were killed in the quake and some 300 remain missing. Many sections of Christchurch are in ruins.

“My family is OK, but obviously, it’s a horrendous situation,” Harrison said. “They got shook up pretty good in Methven and there’s quite a bit of damage, but nothing like Christchurch. Center city of Christchurch is very old. I was there at Christmas time and the Christchurch Cathedral was an absolute mess from the September quake (7.1 on the Richter scale). This one was two miles deep.

“My bother Graeme actually was in Christchurch during the quake right by the cathedral and he was in a hotel having lunch when it started to shake. Somebody yelled, ‘Everybody out.’ He ran out and the whole thing collapsed, total devastation.

“When I was there in December, you could see where all the roads were split (from the September quake). The earthquake worked from the hills to the city in a straight line and you can see where they filled in the split. Looking at the September damage, I thought, ‘This is going to take years to straighten out.’ But now this; just forget about it.

“There’s thousands of earthquakes in New Zealand, most you never feel. The day after Christmas, December 26, they had a 5.2 quake. I was on the golf course and never even felt it. The funny thing was, one of our friends was about to hit a tee shot and the ball fell off the tee. We didn’t think anything of it at the time ‘til we got in to the clubhouse and the guy said, ‘How about that earthquake?’ It was 5.2 and we didn’t even feel it.

“My dad, Tom, is 50 miles away from the center of the quake and he was sitting down and it nearly threw him out of the chair. There’s nothing you can do. My major fear there is they say it could be capable of a 9 earthquake. This last quake was a 6.3, the first one (in September) was 7.1, but it happened at 3 a.m. and no one was killed. The one I was there for, there was a lot of damage but no one was killed. The worst thing is the uncertainty. It’s been going on solid since September. They get one pretty much every day. They can’t predict it. If anyone could have predicted it, they would have had every one out of the city.”

Nicola Abrams, on staff at Perretti Farms and a board member of the Harness Horse Youth Foundation, said both her family and that of her husband, trainer Chris Ryder, are unhurt back home in New Zealand.

“Our families are all safe, though because of all the confusion and telecommunications problems, we don’t know about our extended families, cousins and such,” Abrams said.

“Chris’ younger brother had his house destroyed when the first earthquake struck (in September). It was condemned. He and his family are living with his parents, waiting for their house to be rebuilt. That is a long slow process when there are a lot of people in more need than them. They do have a place to stay and some people are in just temporary housing. Chris is one of six and his family is in and around, but this quake, they were fine.

“My brother-in-law was at the yearling sales and he said that they had no idea of the extent of the destruction in the downtown area. The yearling sales just continued on. But since cell phones were down, as the day went on, bit by bit, they got word.

“Everything in my mother’s house has been smashed except for large pieces of furniture. She thinks her house is OK. All the bookshelves and the TV fell off the wall, the computer’s gone. It’s going to be some time to get everything cleaned up. Chris and I lived there for years and you’d feel one (an earthquake) at times, but this is just unheard of, what they’re going through at the moment.”

Addington Raceway, outside Christchurch, reportedly has significant damage to the track surface and facilities. Racing will cease for the next several weeks as repairs are undertaken. The Interdominian Series, a major New Zealand-Australia pacing series, is scheduled to take place at Addington in late March.