Christchurch earthquake
New Zealand's south island city of Christchurch was struck with a devastating 6.3 magnitude earthquake demolishing the city's buildings and claiming 181 lives.
Two buses were crushed by falling buildings and the central part of the city was quickly evacuated as multiple death reports were coming in from all different locations following the quake.
Christchurch faced a loss of several lives, power cuts, and extensive damage to the city. The city also ran out of ambulances and had to shut down the Christchurch airport.
New Zealand's Prime Minister, John Key, declared a national state of emergency.
The damage bill was estimated to cost up to $NZ30 billion.
This 2011 earthquake was New Zealand's costliest natural disaster as well the third-costliest earthquake worldwide.
