Quake-risen seabed an 'eyesore'

6:54 pm on 24 March 2017

A resident of Kaikōura's Waipapa Bay says the seabed pushed up by the earthquake has become an "eyesore".

New research from GNS Science shows the earthquake pushed parts of the South Island, at Cape Campbell, six metres closer to the North Island.

It raised the seabed by up to eight metres at Waipapa Bay, north of the town.

The magnitude 7.8 earthquake raised up the seabed.

The magnitude 7.8 earthquake raised up the seabed. Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King

Belinda Girl was not surprised by the official findings, as the landscape changed dramatically.

It was an eyesore as far as she was concerned.

She said it was "horrible" and covered with mosquitoes.

"It is ugly, it is white, it is smelly. There are all these rockpools that are just slimy, green pools of the most hideous mosquitoes you've ever seen.

The roads and cliffs around Waipapa Bay were also still heavily damaged, she said.

University of Otago senior geology lecturer Dr Virginia Toy said the amount of movement compared with the size of the Kaikōura earthquake did take her by surprise.

She had heard of more substantial movements.

The seabed on the coast of Kaikōura has risen metres out of the ocean.

The seabed on the coast of Kaikōura rose metres out of the ocean. Photo: @lou_gordongreen

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