Local firefighter one of first to Kaikoura post-earthquake (+video)

For most people, being in the right place at the right time would not include getting caught in an earthquake.

But for the Fire Service's Rotorua Lakes area commander, Graham Fuller, being in Wellington when the 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit meant he was one of the first called upon to fly into Kaikoura.

"I was staying on the 19th floor of a hotel when the earthquake hit and I thought for the first time in my life that I may not actually make it out.

"It was quite scary the way it got stronger and stronger until you could no longer stand. I was on my hands and knees.

"I got out of the building and then started hearing reports about damage in Blenheim and was asked to go assist. When we got there we started to hear that Kaikoura had been badly damaged and were asked to carry on out there.

"I didn't think about it twice, it's what we are trained to deal with so of course I said, yes, I'll help in any way I can."

Mr Fuller said after the earthquake, that struck North Canterbury just after midnight on Monday morning, there was no communication with Kaikoura.

He touched down there at 4.45am on Monday.

"We didn't know what we were going into. It was quite overwhelming touching down. What got me the most was how much the earth had moved.

"There were rocks on the seabed that were once completely covered and are now sticking right out of the water. There were places where the foreshore was higher than the road, the railway had been distorted, there was a lot of damage."

His main purpose was making sure everybody was safe and putting a plan together to identify dangerous zones.

"You're by yourself out there and only have a few people to do a whole lot of tasks. There's no sewerage, no water, no food so it has to be a managed process."

Mr Fuller said it was the first serious natural disaster he had been involved in.

"I'd say this will be a job that sticks in my mind for a while. The locals were amazing with how resilient they were and how they had all banded together.

"I don't think many people would consider being caught in an earthquake as being in the right place at the right time but for me it was.

"While there wasn't much sleep to be had for 30 hours or so, it was good to be able to help and provide relief for the few local emergency services in Kaikoura."