WeatherWatch.co.nz would like to extend our deepest condolences to the people of Christchurch and Canterbury following yesterday’s horrific earthquake.

We can confirm that our weather analyst Richard Green is safe and sound apart from a small cut to his head.  Richard was working in the city at the time of the quake.  Richard says his family are safe too which we are relieved to hear.

Our Web Developer, Andy Burson, who is also based in Christchurch, is OK along with his partner and their family in the city.

The Radio Network, who we are associated with, have also confirmed their Christchurch staff are OK, while the parent company of The Radio Network and the NZ Herald – APN – have offered their condolences to the people of Christchurch.

This is truly a terrible time for the city, a city that WeatherWatch.co.nz has grown a strong personal and professional bond with over the recent months and we offer our support in whatever way possible.  As of today we will run a daily short range forecast which we will place in our top news stories on the homepage.  The forecasts will concentrate mostly around chance of rain and temperatures.

We will also provide a voice to any charitable organisations or those who are trying to send important community messages to the people of Christchurch.

Because our website is primarily weather based we want to keep our focus on the latest weather, and judging by what stories were most popular yesterday, you, our readers, agree.

In saying that we will bring you any big developments or breaking news from Christchurch as we have done in the past however for extensive earthquake coverage we recommend NewstalkZB, the NZ Herald and CNN.

If you wish to send supportive messages to our readers in Christchurch – or if you’re in Christchurch and want to share your experiences – please do so below by posting a comment.

Kia Kaha – stay strong.

From the entire WeatherWatch.co.nz team based in Auckland and our reporters around New Zealand