Story: Historic earthquakes

The Mātakitaki valley today (2nd of 2)

The Mātakitaki valley today

Over 70 years later, the huge landslide that destroyed the Morel homestead is still obvious in the Mātakitaki valley. The rough, hummocky topography of the landslide is too difficult to clear for farming. The slip blocked the Mātakaitaki River, and a lake extended almost 5 kilometres upstream until a flood in the 1930s, when the river carved a new path through the landslide.

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GNS Science
Reference: CN46448/25
Photograph by Lloyd Homer

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How to cite this page:

Eileen McSaveney, 'Historic earthquakes - The 1929 Arthur’s Pass and Murchison earthquakes', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/4502/the-matakitaki-valley-today (accessed 20 April 2024)

Story by Eileen McSaveney, published 12 Jun 2006, reviewed & revised 28 Mar 2011, updated 1 Nov 2017