Quake city exhausts its shaky residents

After the first big earthquake, Christchurch dusted off and carried on. Not this time.
June 18, 2011

The Anglican bishop, the Right Reverend Victoria Matthews, is seeing a ''deep weariness of soul'' among Christchurch residents.

A business leader is hearing accounts of exhaustion, trauma and stress. A clinical psychologist says some people are at breaking point.

The two big aftershocks that rattled Christchurch this week - magnitude 5.5 and 6 - have heaped another layer of anxiety on to those trying to survive in the earthquake-ravaged city. the rest

There were fears this week that the latest quakes would spark a renewed flight from the region. Even the Prime Minister, John Key, recognised the potential problem, calling on locals to stay if they could.