Most earthquake-prone buildings in the center of Canterbury

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There are 92 earthquake-prone or earthquake-prone buildings in central Canterbury and most of them are in central Ashburton.

Deadlines have been set for about 46 earthquake-prone buildings, by the time they need reinforcement. Ashburton County Council is working with building owners to get work done within those deadlines.

Another 46 potentially earthquake-prone buildings have until early next year to submit assessment reports to the council.

In the event that the reports are not received, the council can consider the buildings earthquake-prone and move forward as if they were and set deadlines for their reinforcement.

Property owners are required to display signs in a prominent place in their building to help the community become aware of the condition.

Deadlines for earthquake-prone buildings depend on when reports were received and on what legislation or policy was enforced at that time, said Jane Donaldson, the council’s director of strategy and compliance.

She said the majority of deadlines are in 2023, but the most recent is currently in 2045.

So far 365 buildings in the area have been evaluated.

Fifty of them have been demolished, 64 have been reinforced, and 159 have been deemed invulnerable to earthquakes.

The 2004 Building Act requires regional authorities to inform the Department of Business, Innovation and Employment of progress toward identifying buildings that are prone to potential earthquakes.

Reporting is seen as a mechanism that provides New Zealanders with assurance that risks to public safety through existing buildings in the event of an earthquake are identified and managed.

A building is defined as earthquake prone if it “exceeds its terminal capacity in an average earthquake, and if it collapses, it is likely to cause injury or death to persons in or near the building or on any other property, or damage to any other property.”

Check the earthquake-prone buildings registry here.

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