A decade after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake devastated Kaikōura, those behind one of New Zealand's biggest infrastructure rebuilds have reflected on the mammoth task of reconnecting the isolated South Island town.
The tremor struck just after midnight on November 14, 2016, tearing through homes, businesses and rail lines, dramatically reshaping parts of the coastline.
The powerful quake, which struck near Culverden in North Canterbury, lasted for nearly two minutes and ruptured more than 20 faults across roughly 180km of the upper South Island.
Two people were killed, hundreds were injured and tens of thousands of landslides were triggered, cutting off access to Kaikōura and leaving residents and tourists stranded.
The widespread destruction prompted what officials described as the biggest road rebuild in New Zealand history,
KiwiRail's Daniel Headifen recalled the scale of the damage when recovery teams were first able to survey it.
"I just remember thinking that's the biggest slip I've ever seen," he told 1News.
"And then realising there are dozens of them along the coast, and just thinking this is a scale of damage we've never seen before."
Crews faced thousands of individual repair jobs along almost 200km of railway, while more than 200 major sites across 185km of the roading network required attention.
"There were thousands of sites. There were literally thousands of things to do," Headifen said.
The destruction of the Main North Line and State Highway 1 severed critical freight and supply routes, bringing transport along the northeast coast of the South Island to a standstill.
"There was talk of 'It's too big ... we might never reopen again,'" Headifen recalled.
A rebuild like no other
NZTA Waka Kotahi's Tresca Forrester said the scale of the operation meant teams had to draw on expertise from overseas.
"We didn't have a playbook for this," she said.
"We had to call on a lot of expertise nationally and internationally, particularly around the rockfall and geotechnical capabilities."
The recovery effort was further complicated by damaged communication networks. Crews relied on satellite phones and emergency beacons to stay in contact while working in remote areas.
The rebuild also brought an influx of contractors into Kaikōura, providing an economic lifeline for the community as it recovered from the disaster.
Forrester said residents had welcomed workers into the town with open arms, despite the significant disruption caused by the massive operation.
Less than a year after the earthquake the Main North Line had reopened to limited freight services, and State Highway 1 reopened in December 2017.
The $1.2 billion project clocked up more than six million work hours, with crews racing to restore the vital connections before Christmas.
Forrester said reopening State Highway 1 was "one of the best days".
"You could see the push to the lead up to that was really intense. We had really tight deadlines," she said.
While Kaikōura bore the brunt of the destruction, the impact was also felt hundreds of kilometres away in Wellington, where violent shaking damaged buildings, forced evacuations and disrupted businesses across the capital.
Several commercial buildings were later demolished, while the city's waterfront and port suffered significant damage from liquefaction, ground cracking and subsidence.
Thousands of workers were also displaced from their offices, with some businesses forced to relocate while damaged buildings were assessed.
Back in Kaikōura, the rebuilt road and rail corridor has continued to serve as a vital connection between the upper South Island and the rest of the country.
Ten years on, Headifen said it was remarkable to reflect on how much was achieved in such a short period.
"It feels quite amazing thinking how much got done in such a short time, coming from such a devastating starting point," he said.
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