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Tracking today's events as they happen on Day Four of the Christchurch earthquake disaster.
7.30pm
That concludes our latest updates for today. Our quake coverage will continue tomorrow.
7.11pm
Seven of Christchurch's libraries will reopen tomorrow, says Christchurch City Council. They are Bishopdale, Fendalton, New Brighton, Papanui, Shirley, South and Spreydon. These libraries have all been assessed and safe to resume operations. The Central Library remains closed.
6.23pm
Emergency services have revealed the toll Saturday's earthquake has taken on their own staff and the level of commitment police and ambulance staff have offered.
Christchurch's police inspector John Price says 21 staff have lost homes in the earthquake and still are coming into work.
Mr Price said relief staff have come in from Southland and the Bay of Plenty to help out local officers.
He said despite the chaos, there has not been an increase in overall crime since Saturday's earthquake.
Meanwhile, St John's announced that 23 of their ambulance staff have had homes damaged.
6.18pm
The Red Cross says numbers going to welfare centres are rising, as people are increasingly alarmed by aftershocks and the realisation that their homes may be demolished.
The aid organisation told Radio New Zealand more people were needing help with trauma as they arrive at the centre and the reality of their situation sets in.
5.42pm
Lines company Orion says it's nearing the end of getting all its customers in Christchurch back on the power grid.
From having around 1000 homes cut off last night, Orion power CEO Roger Sutton says they've now reduced the number further.
"We set ourselves a target yesterday of going home with no more than 1000 customers off. We got there, our target for tonight is 500 and we're very confident we're going to get there as well."
Mr Sutton adds though, that the network is still fragile.
4.37pm
Schools in Christchurch are to stay closed until next week, a press conference has been told.
4.34pm
Some Canterbury tradesman are worried cowboys are about to move into the district to make the most of the devastating earthquake.
Christchurch roofing contractor Tony Stuart said he, along with many tradesmen, was working at reduced rates to help people but he feared out-of-town cowboys would see the devastation as an opportunity to rip off people who needed damaged homes repaired.
"I would hate to see the generosity of the Christchurch people undermined by these unscrupulous operators."
4.32pm
All jury trials scheduled in Christchurch this week have been postponed because jurors were unlikely to be unavailable.
2.55pm
Lots of photos from a variety of sources at this Christchurch earthquake photo collection.
2.40pm
When Parliament sat at 2pm today Prime Minister John Key made a statement about the effect of the earthquake on Christchurch. The leaders of other parties spoke, and Parliament did not hold question time.
2.05pm
Here's some CCTV video from inside a Noel Leemings store in Moorhouse, Christchurch at the time of the earthquake.
2.00pm
Worth bookmarking if you want to view all the earthquake news, photos, video and links in one place is our dedicated Christchurch Earthquake section on nzherald.co.nz.
1.55pm
A website has been set up to help Canterbury residents access services in the aftermath of Saturday's quake.
CanterburyEarthquake.org contains information from councils, the
Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management, the Ministry of Social Development, Environment Canterbury, The Ministry of Health and Canterbury District Health Board, EQC and ACC, Metrolink and others.
1.50pm
There's an expectation that the Prime Minister will announce today that hardship grants will be made to private sector workers who are not being paid, as a consequence of the Canterbury earthquake.
1.40pm
The Booksellers website has put together a list of book stores in Christchurch and how they have fared.
1.10pm
The Christchurch City Council has advised that two unstable Heritage buildings on Manchester St in the central city will be demolished this afternoon, the New Zealand Express Company building and Cecil House. One dates back to 1877, the other to 1906. Here's the notice.
1.03pm
Civil defence and disaster recovery information of special interest to the Waimakariri district in North Canterbury - home to the towns of Rangiora and Kaiapoi - can be found here.
12.55pm
Secondary school teachers have joined radiographers in calling off strikes in Canterbury following Saturday's earthquake.
The Post Primary Teachers' Association (PPTA) will hold a nationwide one-day strike in support of their pay claim on September 15 but has agreed to call off action in Canterbury as a gesture of goodwill.
Radiographers holding a one-day nationwide strike today have also called off striking in Canterbury.
12.45pm
City streets aren't the only hazardous place in Canterbury. Trampers are being advised to keep clear of tracks in the region until they have been checked by the Department of Conservation (DOC).
There was concern fallen debris and damaged structures could pose a risk.
The Pinnacles Hut track, the Staveley Lime Kiln near Mount Somers and the Otukaikino Reserve north of Christchurch are closed.
12.15pm
Lots of phone calls coming in from pet owners. Herald reporter Elizabeth Binning covered this topic in this story today.
12.14pm
Christchurch Libraries remain closed, but they do have an informative blog for readers (and writers).
12.05pm
Accommodation website Room4Rent yesterday offered to help bring Christchurch displaced families in contact with homeowners with some spare room in their house. Here's some initial response.
11.50am
Christchurch residents are being urged to check their chimneys for earthquake damage before using them.
Cold weather is predicted for Canterbury tomorrow but a fire lit in a damaged chimney could burn the whole house down, the Insurance Council says.
Chimneys must be checked by building officials or insurers before they were used.
11.40am
A shallow earthquake measuring magnitude 5.2 has rattled Hawke's Bay this morning but does not appear to have caused any damage.
Geonet says the quake struck 20km south-east of Porangahau just before 11am.
The quake, close to the town of Dannevirke, was described by one resident as a "rock and a roll" but no damage has been reported so far.
11.25am
Amazingly, tourism is edging back into life in earthquake-torn Christchurch. And here's some information for travellers from Tourism NZ.
11.00am
SAME CELL, DIFFERENT PRISON:Inmates from Christchurch Men's and Women's prisons are being transferred.
"There is a risk that the current water pressure would not be adequate for sprinklers to work effectively in the event of a fire," a spokesman said.
Inmates from the Men's prison would be taken by bus to Otago Corrections Facility and charter flights would take women to Auckland Regional Women's Corrections Facility. They would be double-bunking to create enough room.
10.45am
Prime Minister John Key has called off his trip to Europe, which was to start on Friday.
My Key said that the swarm of aftershocks last night in Christchurch had been a factor in his decision to stay.
"I've decided on balance it wouldn't be prudent for me to leave. I'd rather stay here and be in New Zealand," he told reporters at Parliament.
He said Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street and the Elysée Palace would be contacted today and "I'm sure they will fully understand."
10.40am
Video certainly has the power to make current events compelling. Here are our Top Five earthquake videos on nzherald.co.nz:
1. Aerial footage from Herald videographer Mark Mitchell
2. Mark Mitchell records the incredible survival story of a Christchurch teen
3. Joe Morgan's footage captures the extensive damage
4. Mark Mitchell records a pair's devastation at watching their business being demolished
5. Reader video recorded during the 7.1 earthquake
10.30am
International coverage of the quake still high. Here's a story on CNN, for example.
10.20am
Kiwi clothing design and manufacturing company Toi Design are offering free rainwear to affected young victims, until available supplies run out. Details here.
9.50am
Here's the latest on the police cordon around central Christchurch city.
9.10am
METALLICA ARE STILL COMING! The heavy metal rockers are refusing to let New Zealand's recent earthquake stop them from performing for fans.
Devotees feared the big quake would prompt Metallica to postpone two sold-out shows set for Christchurch later this month.
But the band insists the shows at the CBS Canterbury Arena - close to the epicentre of the earthquake - will go ahead as planned on September 21 and 22.
Engineers are currently assessing the 9,000-capacity venue for damage, but bosses insist it doesn't appear the arena has been damaged at all. (Source: Celebrity news website PR-inside.com)
8.55am
Don't forget, if you are in Canterbury, the APN Regional website Star Canterbury has up-to-date local information and resources. There's also a feature on earthquake victims' stories.
8.52am
Two more aftershocks have hit Canterbury in the last hour.
A quake measuring 3.6 on the Richter scale hit at 8.14am and was followed 10 minutes later by a quake measuring 3.6.
Both quakes had an epicentre 30km south-east of Darfield with a focal depth of 5km, according to the GNS website.
8.35am
Christchurch Airport was closed for over two hours this morning after cracks appeared in the walls.
Airport spokesman Gareth Owen said the airport usually opens at about 5am but with the aftershocks overnight, engineers were called in to check the safety of the building.
Mr Owen said it was deemed safe and was opened at 7.30am.
8.20am
Canterbury residents were kept awake by a series of strong aftershocks overnight as Civil Defence warned the biggest may not yet have struck.
The aftershocks included one with a magnitude of 5.2 shortly before 11.30pm, one of 5.4 soon after, and another of 5.4 around 3.30am today.
8.12am
Just a reminder about all the dramatic photos emerging from the disaster in Christchurch.
You can check out some of them here at Twitpic.
Flickr also has a great gallery.
8.00am
An IRB delegation, headed by chairman Bernard Lapasset, is expected to arrive in Christchurch tonight to inspect AMI Stadium. But an IRB spokesman insisted that World Cup preparations had not suffered a serious setback.
"We are receiving constant updates from the Rugby New Zealand 2011 and the news is encouraging," the spokesman told UK newspaper The Telegraph. "We have no reason to doubt, given the early assessments of the stadium, that Rugby World Cup 2011 will proceed in Christchurch.
7.35am
Michael Aitken from Civil Defence says New Brighton and Kaiapoi are their main focuses, Newstalk ZB reports.
He says they're following the river around the Eastern Coast where liquefaction has been the worst.
Mr Aitken is asking people to remain patient because they're on their way.
7.20am
The cordon around the Christchurch CBD has been reduced.
It's now bounded by Madras, Colombo, St Asaph and Worcester streets.
There had been plans to reduce it further later this morning but continuing aftershocks have changed that.
7.00am
Metro bus services are operating today and will be dropping passengers as close to the cordon in the Christchurch CBD as possible.
Drop off points will be along Moorhouse Ave, Madras St, Durham St and Montreal St.
However, the company's warning the situation in the city may change, and as a result the location of the drop off points may change as well.
People need to check if they can enter the cordon before travelling and are advised to go to Metro's website for updates.
