UPDATE: Tragically, on 7th March 2011, it was confirmed that Phil had died in the earthquake. My condolences to Phil’s wife and family.
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Phil Coppeard is one of the many missing people following the terrible earthquake that hit Christchurch in New Zealand on Tuesday 22nd February at 12:51pm.
Phil moved to Christchurch a few months ago with his wife who was interviewed on Thursday 24th February on Radio New Zealand National. She talked about where Phil was going and what he was wearing.
You can hear the interview here:
http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/ntn/ntn-20110224-1038-Suzanne_Craig-048.mp3
Phil is 41 years old. 6′ tall with green eyes, brown hair and sideburns. He was wearing jeans and would have been carrying a backpack, probably listening to music on his iPhone.
He was on his way to Canterbury University and had left home between 12:15 and 12:30 to catch the #3 bus from their home in Redcliffs in the eastern outskirts of the city. The route meant Phil would go through the Bus Exchange on Litchfield Street in the centre of Christchurch. Its just a couple of blocks from the Cathedral which you may have been on the news.
Given the times, it is likely Phil was on a bus in the centre of Christchurch at the time of the earthquake.
When Suzanne tried to call Phil initially, the phone just rang through to voicemail and now it is going straight to voicemail which almost certainly means the battery has died. Suzanne and friends have been doing the rounds trying to see if Phil has been registered by any of the emergency services or hospitals but so far without success. Apparently, some of the injured have been take to hospitals in other parts of New Zealand so there is no guarantee Phil is still in area.
Phil is the type of person who would do anything he could to make contact if he were able so the concern is he is injured or trapped somewhere and has not been identified.
Obviously there are a lot of people missing in Christchurch but if you have any possible leads about his whereabouts, please leave a comment or contact me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/robatherton
I read some interesting comments from Dame Stella Rimington (former head of MI5) today. She believes that the government is using the fear of terrorism to erode people’s liberty and move towards a police state.