Earthquake damage to a Lichfield Street building. Photo:NZPA / David Alexander.
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All three Christchurch gay venues are in the city's CBD which is now subject to a state of emergency and is being evacuated due to loss of power and water, collapsed buildings and the fear that aftershocks could bring down more.
Menfriends co-owner Stuart Yeatman says there were "luckily no more than a dozen patrons" at the three-storey venue when the quake hit at 4.35am. "There was general disbelief when it hit," he says. "It was very violent and went on and on for around a minute and a half. Everything was moving violently, there was loud noise and it was very shocking for staff and patrons."
Yeatman says the power went off immediately but emergency lighting kicked in. He says his staff handled the emergency extremely well and managed to get patrons clothed and out of the building very quickly. "They evacuated the place smoothly and I am very impressed with how they reacted." No one was injured in the earthquake or the evacuation.
At this stage the full extent of damage to the building and facilities is not known but Yeatman says there is considerable amount of dust and debris lying around. "We've got a whole lot of cleaning up to do."
The Lichfield street block which includes the gay venues is littered with building debris and has been closed off. The Menfriends building has suffered damage to the roof and guttering from a falling brick parapet at the rear of the structure. Yeatman, who managed to drive to Lichfield Street shortly after the quake to shut off the business's utility connections, says there is no apparent external damage to either Cruz or The Box.
In a brief message Alex Baguley of The Box says "whole buildings" have collapsed in Lichfield Street but as the area has been officially cordoned off he is unable to inspect his business. "We won't know for several days whether our building is safe to return to," he says.
"There's no power or water the at the moment," Yeatman says, and he is unsure when Menfriends will reopen. "We'll definitely be closed tonight and after that we will just have to wait and see."
The NZ AIDS Foundation says its Christchurch staff are safe but have not yet been able to check how the quake might have affected its central city regional office, which includes testing and counseling services.
GayNZ.com has not yet been able to contact a spokesperson for Cruz.
