New Zealand's High Commissioner to Samoa says people there are feeling the effects of the Christchurch earthquake in a deep way.
Nick Hurley says in addition to the Samoan government's more than 75 thousand US dollar donation to the relief effort the public's responded very generously to Red Cross and church appeals.
He says a conservative estimate of the money raised so far through people's donations is about 60 thousand US dollars.
"I think that's one reason why they have responded with such open hearts is that it's only 18 months, less than 18 months, since they themselves were struck by the terrible tsunami, September 2009. So they feel exactly how the people in Christchurch have felt, the suddeness of the nature, the arbitrariness of the tragedy."
Nick Hurley says everyone has a link or a story that connects with Christchurch in one way or another.
