Last week, I shared some of the wonderful lines and stanzas from the “September” (ie 4th, 2010: the 7.1 earthquake) from Leaving the Red Zone — the poetry anthology (edited by James Norcliffe and Joanna Preston, and published by Clerestory Press) that commemorates the fifth anniversary of the February 22, 2011, earthquake.

The September 4 earthquake may have been bigger on the Richter scale, but it was the violent vertical accelerations of the February 22nd quake (6.3), which struck at 12.51 pm, that really devastated my home city of Christchurch.

Today, I am sharing some lines and stanzas from the “February” section of Leaving the Red Zone.

—

…………………………………………….”“…Students
repeating the phrases — Good Morning, Good Evening, Good
-bye. It is nine o’clock, it is ten to eleven. The time
is twelve fifty-one.”

Joanna Preston, “Fault”
.

“The earth roared, jack-hammered
bucked like a brahman bull
at a rodeo.”

Keith Westwater, “February 22, 2011, Report 1”
.

“I am driving through the river/that is my road/to find my
daughter…
my daughter is three/ she shelters under the battle-club/ she hides
inside the ground/ the enemies of god/ circle on the backs of
buzzards/ they rain bricks on the bus dept/ the primary school/
the preschool
I snatch her up/like a football/ I sprint the slowest steps/it is
underwater/ this dream/ it is eternal”

Tusiata Avia, “Finding Sepela; 22 February”
.

“Listen —
Ruaumoko*
walks the land

…

his first steps close
violent,
his last echoes

he treads down the hallway
he moves away

he leaves the door
open”

Rangi Faith, “Walking The Land”
Christchurch, February 22nd 2011

*Ruaumoko is the Maori god of earthquakes