Fieldays helps out Kiwi battler

Chris Stead, Director of Christchurch based company Theme Productions, is busy at Fieldays but just wants to be back home with his family.

Mr Stead was setting up the AgResearch exhibition his company designed and built, which features four giant metre long bugs, when Christchurch was rocked by two aftershocks, measuring 5.5 and 6.0 on the Richter scale.

While the Fieldays Exhibitor was talking to Mr Stead about the giant black beetle his colleague affectionately calls “Barry”, he received a phone call from his partner who said there had been a large aftershock and cliffs were collapsing everywhere, but she was safe.

She was picking her son up from Redcliffs School when the second quake struck at 2.20pm.

Mr Stead said he didn’t know what to think anymore.

“You try to be positive and strong but I can’t help but think how many more strikes till you’re out.’

“I feel really anxious, this morning my main issue was the volcanic ash cloud and getting back to Christchurch by Thursday for another exhibition, now I have no idea if it will even be on.”

Mr Stead’s home was just metres from the epicentre of yesterday’s 5.5 magnitude quake, at Taylor’s Mistake beach, but a neighbour said there was no obvious damage.

He had not heard if Theme Production’s offices, which were irreparably damaged in the February earthquake, had survived.

Long-time Cantabrian Mr Stead said he loves the region and wants his kids to grow up there but the most recent earthquakes raised a lot of questions for him.

Despite this he plans to stick it out in Christchurch.

“So far I’ve been able to get by. I’m a resilient guy, I think most Cantabrians are, so for now I’ll stay in Christchurch.”

Mr Stead has had his fair share of quake turmoil.

His Diamond Harbour home was severely damaged in the September 2010 earthquake forcing him to move his family to Taylor’s Estate.

His new home was then knocked off its foundations during the February earthquake and the building of his event production and prop -company had to be demolished.

The biggest struggle in the wake of the February earthquake was getting back on their feet after losing their building and 80 per cent of their props and belongings, he said.

“It takes so long to get back up and running, an easy job that might usually take a day becomes agonising.”

Mr Stead said that jobs in other towns, such as Fieldays in Hamilton, are important because there is no work left in Christchurch.

“People I know who were in professional management rolls are back on the tools because they need to make a living.”

Theme Productions also worked with AgResearch last year and won the Premier Feature Site Award which Mr Stead hopes to win again this year.