The names of every person who died in the earthquake was read aloud as a national memorial was unveiled on the banks of the Ōtākaro River in Christchurch’s CBD as thousands came to pay their respects.
The memorial includes a marble wall inscribed with the names of those who died in English and their native languages.
It was unveiled by first responders to the earthquake.
“You can know that the memories of your loved ones are at the foundations of this renewed city,” New Zealand Prime Minister Bill English said.
“As the horror and fear of those days retreat further into our past, this memorial will endure as a place of peace.”
The 2011 earthquake, which struck at a shallow depth just outside Christchurch around lunchtime on February 22, had a magnitude of 6.3.
Of the victims, 115 people alone died when the Canterbury Television (CTV) building collapsed, including 64 international students from countries like Japan and China.
Another 18 were killed in the PGC building collapse. On Colombo Street, one of the CBD’s main thoroughfares, another 10 were killed and eight were killed on a bus hit by falling masonry.
Even as the memorial was unveiled, the sounds of construction continued in Christchurch, which is undergoing a NZ$50 billion rebuild.
“The city is recovering, it is rebuilding and renewing.
Of course, that work is not yet over,” Prime Minister English said.
“It is a long journey but the past six years have shown us that the people of Christchurch have the strength and determination to create something exceptional.”
