Ōtautahi / Christchurch Daily Photo

I had family visiting today from Wellington who wanted to see the extent of the residential Red Zone in Christchurch. This is the area of land closest to the Avon River from Avonside to New Brighton and which was cleared of houses due to land damage. As we drove through it they were shocked at all those driveways that now led to nowhere. We stopped for a walk down one of the streets off New Brighton Road. We found fruit trees and grape vibes and mature trees that would have been planted with the hope of seeing them grow to maturity.