Search focus switches to recovery

China USAR members assist New Zealand USAR members as they slowly search through the rubble of the CTV Building in the days following a 6.3-magnitude earthquake that hit Christchurch. Photo / Dean Purcell

A search for survivors has now become a grim effort to recover dead bodies from the rubble of Christchurch city centre.

Civil Defence national controller John Hamilton said at a press conference this afternoon there is now no chance of finding anyone alive in the wreckage left by last week's devastating 6.3 magnitude earthquake.

He said Urban Search and Rescue teams had not reached the decision lightly.

"They have put in their very best effort. They have rescued 60 people from the wreckage.

"As time goes on the chances of finding others alive diminishes.

"We now face the reality there is no chance that anyone could have survived this long.

"There becomes a time when the response has to change from rescue to the recovery of bodies and, sadly, we have reached that point," said Mr Hamilton.

He said the possibility - however small - of a miracle survivor being found did exist, but "we need to be realistic and help families come to term with the grim reality.

Mr Hamilton said Civil Defence was meeting with family members of the missing to explain what the transition means.

Jim Stuart-Black, head of Fire Service's Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams, said the decision meant buildings were still treated as if they contained people.

"People are handled like family members, with care and respect, as they are removed safely."

The USAR teams will undertake assessments of debris and prioritise for controlled clearing of debris, using machinery. They then deconstruct buildings in a way that allows searching to continue.

Mr Stuart-Black said today's decision had to be made on the facts available to Urban Search and Rescue teams.

Most international disaster responses transition to recovery after 72 hours with no sign of life and it had been eight days since the last survivor of the Christchurch earthquake was found, he said.

However, he said recovery teams were not abandoning all hope.

"There is the occasional miracle. We conduct our operations first of all to allow for that miracle."

Also speaking at this afternoon's press conference, Foreign Minister Murray McCully offered condolences to those who now know for sure they have lost their loved ones.

The New Zealand Government knew their plight and would be offering assistance in the coming weeks, he said.

He acknowledged the up to 100 foreigners from 20 countries that are thought to have been killed in the earthquake.

"The New Zealand Government is very conscious of the position they now find themselves in with today's announcement."

Mr McCully also thanked the hundreds of international workers who helped with the search and rescue operation.

The operation would not have been possible without that their help, he said.

"We have never had any capacity - as no government does - to deal with a disaster on this scale by ourselves."

Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker said the decision to make the rescue operation into a recovery was the news "nobody anywhere wanted to hear".

He hoped for a miracle survivor even as the recovery teams started their work, he said.

"But I echo the words we've already heard - that we're perhaps holding out hope against all hope."

Mr Parker said the ultimate aim was still to recover the body of every person who died in the earthquake.

"We have always said it is our goal to reunite everybody who is currently missing with their families.

"That is a very powerful goal. That doesn't change."

He reassured families of the overseas residents who died in the quake that no resources would be spared to find the bodies of their loved ones.

"They're still our children. They're still our guests.

"Until we have accounted for each of them and treated them with all of the dignity and in the most appropriate way possible there will be no lessening of effort at all."

Expect 'red streaks' in budget - PM

The Government's budget in May will show the cost of the Christchurch earthquake, Prime Minister John Key says.

"It just might have some deep streaks of red through it, unfortunately," he told reporters today.

"It's going to be a very important budget because it's about signalling the long but necessary process of rebuilding Christchurch."

Mr Key said it was too early to say whether the Government would have to borrow more money and he again indicated a taxpayer levy wasn't on his agenda.

"Advice from the Treasury is that a levy would be counter-productive," he said.

"If a levy slows the country down economically and we earn less revenue, we might be cutting off our nose to spite our face."

Mr Key confirmed the Government was going to look at the Working for Families scheme as it examined all its spending.

"I think New Zealanders generally would recognise that programmes like Working for Families are very appropriate for low and middle-income earners," he said.

"Whether they have as much relevance for higher income earners is something we need to consider, given we have reduced the top personal tax rate."

Earlier today Mr Key said the earthquake was expected to bite $5 billion out of tax revenue over four years.

In addition to that the financial assistance subsidies announced on Monday carried a $120 million bill and that was expected to rise.

Mr Key said early advice from Treasury was that in the year to this coming June it was possible there would be no growth in the economy because Canterbury would effectively be contracting.

"That has quite a big impact on your books - in the order of around $15b worth of lost GDP which translates to about $5b less of tax potentially (over four years)."

Mr Key said the economy last year suffered due to the September quake and he thought the first two quarters of this year would have been positive without the latest disaster.

Help coming for eastern suburbs

Meanwhile, Civil Defence national controller John Hamilton has assured residents of the hard-hit eastern suburbs everything possible was being done to help them, but his workers had been prioritising the most earthquake-damaged areas.

He asked for understanding from residents of some less badly hit areas that were not receiving the same amount of aid.

"It is a huge task."

Eighty six portaloos are going into Avonside and Dallington today and 120 more will be arriving on Friday. A shipment of 1200 portaloos is due by the weekend.

Generators that can service 200 houses at a time are being brought in to reconnect power in residential houses, he said.

There are now 200 building evaluation teams, 400 welfare staff and 50 search and rescue staff visiting homes in the area, he said.

He acknowledged the last nine days had been extremely difficult for residents, but said Civil Defence was working as quickly as it could.

"Many residents are without electricity, water or access to toilets. Transport is also difficult because of the damage done to roads. At the same time we are also dealing with an unprecedented urban search and rescue operation in the central city."

Undertaking building evaluations and providing portaloos and chemical toilets was the priority for Civil Defence teams, Mr Hamilton said.

Building evaluation inspectors will have finished assessing all priority areas in the Eastern Suburbs by the end of Saturday, he said.

Only red stickers, which indicate a property is heavily damaged and unsafe, are being issued.

- with NZ Herald staff and NZPA