They drop hundreds of litres of seawater from the sparkling ocean, internationally-famed for its blue whales and dolphins, onto the giant landslides blocking State Highway One north of Kaikoura. And there are diggers everywhere, picking, raking, grading the debris on nine massive landslips that were created by the magnitude-7.8 earthquake of November 14 last year. Four months on, the road - State Highway One, the main arterial route linking Picton and Christchurch, the lifeline of the South Island - is a hive of activity. Five helicopters drop hundreds of litres of seawater from the sparkling ocean onto the giant landslides blocking State Highway One. State Highway 1 south of Kaikoura succumbed to downfalls earlier in the week and was out of action for a few days.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 10, 2017 22:00 UTC