It is approximately 15 km in length, from its mouth to Teddington. Its main centre is the Port of Lyttelton, which serves the city of Christchurch. Lyttelton is connected to Christchurch by a single-track Lyttelton rail tunnel (opened 1867), a two lane road tunnel (opened 1964) and two roads over the Port Hills. Opposite Port Lyttelton is the settlement of Diamond Harbour. To the west of Port Lyttelton is the Maori settlement of Rāpaki. The harbour is formed from a collapsed volcanic crater, plugged by two islands, Quail Island and Ripapa (Ripa) Island. Ripapa has extensive fortifications and was used during World War I for the internment of German nationals, the most famous being Count Felix von Luckner. Quail Island was used as a leper colony.
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Last updated on Sunday June 29, 2008 at 22:03:25 PDT (GMT -0700)
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