Press Release - Auckland CDEM Group

The Auckland Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group and New Zealand Red Cross are urging people to take a few simple steps to be prepared, and as part of National Disaster Reduction Week, today launched a booklet which highlights ways individuals and families can better prepare themselves for an emergency.

The booklet provides simple suggestions to help people minimise the effects of a natural disaster on themselves, their families and their properties, and how to survive the initial days of a disaster, when help may not be immediately available. It outlines how to prepare a household emergency plan, including:
• What to include in an Emergency Survival Kit (e.g. radio and batteries, torch, water - 3 litres per person/day, food).
• What to include in a Getaway Kit (e.g. blankets and clothing).
• Hazards to consider and how to avoid them (e.g. falling objects, loss of water and power, evacuating your home).
• Identifying key contacts, a family meeting place, and who is responsible for what items.
• What to do during a disaster.

“Being prepared for a disaster is everyone’s responsibility,” says Cr Neil Morrison, chair of the Auckland Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, which is charged with ensuring a co-ordinated response in the event of a large scale emergency in the Auckland region.
Cr Morrison says that disasters can strike at any time without warning, and being prepared can make a real difference during an emergency, and in the days following.

“We cannot stress enough just how important it is that people do a few simple things to better prepare themselves, and their families, for an emergency. The steps people take in advance really do make a difference in terms of being able to cope when a disaster strikes.”

Cr Morrison says that people need to realise they might be by themselves for up to three days, and that during this time it is highly likely that there could be limited drinking water available, power and phone lines could be cut off and sewerage systems could be affected.

New Zealand Red Cross Director General Andrew Weeks says that Hurricane Katrina and the South Asia earthquake have highlighted that in a large disaster it may take several days for outside aid to reach those affected, and the initial response often comes from the community themselves.

“Those first to respond to the earthquake in Pakistan were not government officials or international aid agencies, but local volunteers such as the Pakistan Red Crescent branches. They were the ones rescuing their neighbours, sourcing local relief items and telling the world what kind of help was needed,” Mr Weeks says.

The World Disasters Report 2005, released by the Red Cross last week, highlights that timely information can be just as important in saving lives in a disaster as food and shelter afterwards, Mr Weeks says.

”Lives can be saved even before a disaster strikes by providing people with information such as this plan, which helps people to be aware of risks they face and what action they can take in a disaster.”
Mr Weeks says that Auckland is setting an example that other regions around New Zealand should follow, and he encourages other councils to become involved in similar booklets.

“New Zealanders have proved they are excellent at helping out others and responding to disasters from New Orleans to South Asia, and now is the chance to empower New Zealanders to help themselves.”

Copies of the brochure, and other information about being prepared for a disaster is available online at www.cdemg.org.nz. Copies are also available from local councils in the Auckland region, or by calling 0800 22 22 000.