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Quake survivor weds in Christchurch

A woman who was rescued from the rubble of Christchurch’s earthquake tied the knot Friday, delivering a moment of joy amid the tragedy.
Quake survivor weds in Christchurch
Published: February 28, 2011 09:59 AM GMT
Updated: February 28, 2011 09:59 AM GMT

A woman who was rescued from the rubble of Christchurch’s earthquake tied the knot at the Christ the King Catholic Church on Friday, delivering a moment of joy amid the tragedy. Emma Howard was shaken but uninjured after being trapped for more than six hours in the ruins of the Pyne Gould building on Tuesday, The Age reports. The bride, whose strapless gown revealed bruises from the ordeal, was speechless. ”There aren’t words,” she said. The groom, Chris Greenslade, said there was no thought of cancelling the wedding. ”For me, it was just natural. She survived that, so it was meant to happen.” The wedding was on his mind during the agonising wait on Tuesday. ”I said to people, ‘My fiancee is in there. We’re getting married on Friday.’ It was just sheer shock.” Mr Greenslade ran from his central city office expecting to see Ms Howard waiting on the footpath. His optimism turned to dread when he saw the ruin. ”My initial thoughts were, ‘I don’t think anybody could have survived that.’ Then your positive thinking kicks in and you have hope there’s people in there who are alive.” He said the rescue workers were ”amazing”. There was fleeting contact from Ms Howard that indicated she was alive. ”I got a text about three hours in from one of her workmates, from Emma saying, ‘I’m OK, I’m alive, I love you very much’. ”I managed to text back to her before her workmate’s phone died, just saying I was with her parents and that I loved her as well.” The quake caused few logistical problems for the wedding, but the groom had to borrow a suit. FULL STORY Bride survives earthquake to marry three days later (The Age/Dominion Post) PHOTO CREDIT Screenshot from video on The Age report

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