"It's really tough because we feel the pain," Wong said.
Even though Wong is thousands of miles away in Santa Monica, he has been able to help.
Wong kept his mother, sister, brother and their respective families in touch using the Internet.
"I was posting on my /*Facebook*/ (profile) that certain relatives of mine were OK so other family members could see in New Zealand," he said. "They could get online, but they couldn't get on the phone."
But La Canada resident Annie Mitchell didn't need technology to find out how her family was doing.
Mitchell and her daughter Kate were in Christchurch visiting her 82-year-old mother when the quake hit.
Her mother's home suffered little damage, but their nerves were still frayed as aftershocks continued to roll through the area.
