Quake victim thanks 'heroes' for rescue

Rubble after the Christchurch earthquake. Photo / Herald on Sunday

His neighbours felt they were only doing what anybody else would do. But to Simon Robinson, they are heroes.

Mr Robinson, 55, was struck by a collapsing chimney in his bedroom at his Christchurch home when a 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit 11 days ago.

He lost some of his toes and was put into an induced coma, but is now in a stable condition in the intensive care unit at Christchurch Hospital after operations on his legs, feet, jaw and shoulders.

In a statement from his hospital bed, Mr Robinson said he was incredibly grateful to his "heroic neighbours" and wife Debbie who saved his life by quickly pulling together a team of people with a stretcher.

They managed to free him from the rubble in his bedroom and get him to hospital within an hour.

"I was pinned to the ground and squashed into a corner of the bedroom. I remember everything," Mr Robinson said.

"I am very lucky and very thankful to everyone who helped me, especially the amazing medical staff at Christchurch Hospital. Canterbury is an amazing place - the way we pull together and help each other out."

The Herald visited Mr Robinson's neighbours yesterday, who were reluctant to tell their stories of the rescue out of respect for Mr Robinson.

A woman living next door said her husband and son went to Mr Robinson's aid, and they "only did what anybody else would do". She would not comment further.

Another neighbour spoken to this week said the incident had been very traumatic for all involved.

The Canterbury District Health Board's anxiety disorders unit has distributed guidelines to frontline staff about how to deal with the trauma people are going through as a result of the quake and barrage of aftershocks.

"What most people are experiencing now is a normal response to this extraordinary event," the guidelines say.

"Most people will recover from this but it may take weeks or months. Only a very small percentage of people are likely to have ongoing difficulties."

Traumatised people could suffer symptoms such as fatigue, insomnia, mood swings and a racing heart.