"It really is unbelievable," says Graeme Abbot, general manager of Hanmer Springs Thermal Pools and Spa. "But most of all we're grateful - the fact our place is okay means Hanmer Springs locals have been able to swing into collecting donations and helping other communities, like Waiau, who are suffering." The Hanmer Springs' Business Association said there have been some cancellations in the village already. The local Waipara wine industry also escaped major damage. Australian tourists, Nicholas Matthews, sons Noah, 8, and Finn, 12, and wife Bronwen rode out their first ever quakes in Hanmer Springs.

Source: New Zealand Herald November 17, 2016 07:01 UTC