Christchurch – business as usual
Sunday school in Christchurch’s synagogue took place as normal this morning…recent repairs to the building appear to have saved it from serious damage in yesterday’s earthquake…but no-one knows the state of Chabad House.
The ceiling in the Goldstein home
Rabbi Mendel Goldstein with his family outside the Shul this morning
As Christchurch takes stock of the damage following an earthquake which registered 7.4 on the Richter Scale, Rabbi Mendel Goldstein left his severely damaged home and headed to the Christchurch Hebrew Congregation Shul where the normal Sunday morning children’s class took place as usual. More than twenty children attended.
The Goldstein’s home was badly damaged…the ceiling caved in on the dining room area…but no-one was injured as the Goldstein family were in bed as the ‘quake struck at 4:30 a.m.
A relieved Rabbi Goldstein was more than delighted to discover the Shule intact. He told J-Wire: “Just this week a team of builders finished extensive repairs and renovations to the structure of the Shul building which was long overdue. The repairs were carried out over the past few weeks, and the scaffolding still stands! It is quite clear that these timely repairs saved the front wall ith the Shul from falling over into the street.”
He cannot say the same for Chabad House. It is still unreachable and Rabbi Goldstein may have to wait some time before learning the fate and state of the building
Rabbi Goldstein told J-Wire that he would be spending most of today visiting traumatised older members of the community.
Tough stuff! Children spend Sunday morning at Sunday school
The Goldstein dining room
