Hanmer Springs Earthquake

Kaikoura's Whale Watch has spotted the first whales off the coast since Monday's earthquake.

There is no point in relocating the capital when there is so little certainly about where a natural disaster might hit, an economics of disasters expert says. Audio

Some wildlife enthusiasts are angry at being ordered to stop rescuing paua from uplifted sections of the coastline south of Kaikoura.

About 200 people have attended an emotional outdoor interdenominational church service in Kaikoura this morning.

Last week's Kaikoura earthquake has lent fresh urgency to plans for a national text-based tsunami warning system.

Insight - Phil Pennington and Tim Graham share the stories and events from the first days of the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that ripped the land apart, caused massive slips, cut off Kaikoura and towns… Audio

Video - After the earthquake hit Kaikoura, the USS Sampson's mission immediately turned from the first US naval visit in 33 years to civil defence. RNZ visual journalist Claire Eastham-Farrelly is… Video

Power Play - After handling the devastating Christchurch earthquakes, the Kaikoura shake would have felt like deja-vu to the PM and his senior ministers, writes Jane Patterson.

Natasha Frewin has been living out of a backpack since she was evacuated from her central Wellington apartment. She has no idea when she can go home.

The threat of further slips means the only half-functioning road out of Kaikoura will not reopen until next week. Video

Their Kaikoura home may be ruined, but Billy the goat's family are in good spirits.

Civil Defence will give the Kaikoura District Council $1 million in earthquake emergency funding.

Gerry Brownlee has thanked the warship crews helping the quake response - including on the first US ship to visit NZ waters in decades. Video

Gareth McLean's quick reactions saved his baby daughter's life in the earthquake, but the family do not know when they can go home.

First Person - RNZ reporter Alex Perrottet recounts his journey into the post-earthquake disaster zone.

The lack of a functioning sewerage system is the latest challenge facing the 3500 residents of quake-hit Kaikoura.

Apartment dwellers on one side of Tory Street will be able to return home, but others will have to stay away.

A convoy of 27 army trucks carrying essential supplies for Kaikoura Hospital has arrived in the town. Video