We're ready to help Chch

An armada of the region's emergency and civil services has been sent north to help battle-weary crews around Christchurch.

Fire, police and ambulance staff have headed north to provide support for up to a week, along with building inspectors and a rescue team. At the same time, South Canterbury residents have offered to open their homes to quake-struck residents.

More than 100,000 houses were damaged by the 7.1 magnitude earthquake.

A state of emergency remained in place yesterday as aftershocks continued to regularly shake the region, with close to 100 recorded since the first quake at 4.35am on Saturday.

Timaru District Council emergency management officer Lamorna Cooper said about a dozen residents had offered shelter to Christchurch residents without homes, at no charge.

"People are willing to open their homes up out of the goodness of their heart."

Ms Cooper said others were offering clothing and other resources and said anyone willing to contribute should contact the Christchurch City Council on (03)9418999.

Timaru district services manager Ashley Harper said four building officials left yesterday to provide assistance to the hard-hit Waimakariri area.

"We have also offered to provide assistance to the emergency control centre in Christchurch and we will respond to any request we get."

Waitaki mayor Alex Familton said North Otago was also offering back-up. "The community of Waitaki empathise with the people of Canterbury caught in the aftermath and trauma of the earthquake they have been through," he said.

He said the district had valuable experience, having provided resources and manpower to Haiti through the Hearts and Hands for Haiti project, initiated by local woman Robyn Couper.

Timaru police senior sergeant Mark Offen said five constables left yesterday for Christchurch, where they would remain for a week.

"That's all they've asked for at this stage. The request came yesterday and we were more than willing to help our northern neighbours."

He said the deployment would not affect Timaru's staffing levels.

Police are now working with the army to keep law and order in the damaged city and manning checkpoints aimed at restricting who can access the city's centre.

The Fire Service had sent its new command unit to help in the city, along with a generator. Three firefighters from Timaru had been sent to help in the Urban Search and Rescue team.

St John Ambulance spokesman Ian Henderson said several staff from Timaru had been sent to help crews in Christchurch.

Master Builders president Shay Bray said there was talk among South Canterbury's builders about travelling to Christchurch to help, but it would be some time before that happened. He said the insurance process would have to be worked through first.

Meanwhile, Timaru's vets have been "surprisingly quiet" in the wake of the earthquake.

Dr Bryan Gregor, of Highfield Veterinary Services, said some pet owners had reported their animals felt some anxiety before the shocks, but they had not had to deal with many reports of animals missing or injured.

"It's been surprisingly quiet," he said. "There hasn't been that much damage around here, thankfully, although I haven't heard from colleagues in Christchurch yet."

Ashbury Vet Services told the Herald they received a few phone calls about pets going missing, while Angela Fairbrother, of South Canterbury SPCA, said there had been calls about cats who had "scarpered".

"Cats and dogs feel the [reverberations] before we do. If you are concerned about your pets, I would suggest that you keep them inside or in a safe place."

- © Fairfax NZ News