Bereaved families and others gathered Thursday to mourn the 185 people killed in the powerful earthquake that hit southern New Zealand exactly 13 years ago. Among the victims, 28 were from Japan.

A memorial ceremony was held in Christchurch from 51 minutes past noon, the exact time the magnitude 6.3 quake hit on February 22, 2011. The jolt destroyed structures including one housing a language school where Japanese were studying.

Participants, including New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Japanese relatives of victims, paid a silent tribute, followed by reading aloud of the names of all who died.

After the ceremony, they offered flowers to the cenotaph with the names of each victim inscribed, remembering their family members and friends lost in the disaster.

A citizen of Toyama City in central Japan, Horita Kazuo, lost his daughter Megumi, then 19.

Horita said he feels as if he could meet the daughter when he visits the site.

He said he first thought of the daughter when the New Year's Day quake hit the Noto Peninsula, near Toyama. He said his heart ached to think that she must have been scared, not knowing what to do in the violent jolt.

Prime Minister Luxon said he would never forget those who were staying in Christchurch to pursue their dreams and possibilities.