CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand – The siblings huddled today on sodden grass, staring at the smoldering remains of a building that collapsed with their mother inside. They hadnt heard from TV presenter Donna Manning since a powerful earthquake tore through one of New Zealands largest cities, killing at least 75 people and leaving some 300 missing in the rubble. Still, there was hope.
"My mum is superwoman, shed do anything," Mannings 18-year-old daughter Lizzy said, tears streaming down her face. Just then, a police officer approached and knelt before Lizzy and her 15-year-old brother Kent in the rain. "I have some horrible news..." the officer began. The teens faces crumpled, and their father wrapped them in an embrace. There was no hope left for anyone trapped inside the building, the officer said gently.
It was one of the darkest moments of a desperate hunt for any signs of life in the twisted rubble in the city of Christchurch, as Prime Minister John Key declared the quake a national disaster and analysts estimated its cost at up to $12 billion. Hundreds of troops, police and emergency workers raced against time and aftershocks that threatened to collapse more buildings. They picked gingerly through the ruins, poking heat-seeking cameras into gaps between tumbles of bricks and sending sniffer dogs over concrete slabs. More teams rushed in from Australia, Asia, the United States and Britain, along with a military field hospital and teams to help repair power, water and phone lines that were damaged in all corners of the city of some 350,000 people.