The earthquake in Christchurch has sort of personal meaning. We visited New Zealand one summer (winter there). One of stops was Christchurch. We had driven from Queenstown (the Jackson Hole of the south island) that afternoon. We wandered around the square in the evening and viewed the cathedral. Christchurch was considered a very English town and it could be seen in the architecture. Most of New Zealand still burned coal and there was a brown cloud as we drove in. We flew out later that evening for Melbourne, Australia. Christchurch did make an impression on us and we remember all the wonderful people we met in NZ.
Our daughter also did her student teaching on the south island. She e-mailed her supervisor who now teaches in Queenstown and she said they could feel the quake at their school. I don't know how far away that is.
It is a tragedy but it's even more personal when you've been there.