Recovery Newsletter October 2012

October 2012 | Issue 5

Newsletter WELCOME

Corinne Ambler EDITOR

Welcome to the October edition of the New Zealand Red Cross recovery newsletter. ¡ Setting up the awning on the first disaster welfare support truck.

New disaster welfare support trucks a hit NZ Red Cross has made a multimillion dollar investment in five brand new, specially designed disaster welfare support trucks.

The first was unveiled in Auckland on October 12.

New Zealand Red Cross International Operations and Emergencies Manager Andrew McKie says the launch went very well and was attended by TVNZ and TV3 as well as many other media.

“This is a big step up for us. These five new trucks are taking New Zealand Red Cross up to another level. The volunteers at the launch were really enthusiastic about them.”

Mr McKie says the trucks are ‘one stop shops’ containing welfare centre equipment and food. They have four removable pods each containing 35 beds, lighting and communication sets, mass casualty triage, first aid and medical equipment, hot water urns, cots, and toiletries.

“The pods can be wheeled out into

an evacuation centre and set up immediately. These trucks show we are serious about what we do. If you give people the right tools and something to be proud of we are likely to attract a lot more volunteers.

“The trucks will be based in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin but can travel wherever they are needed. Disasters can strike quickly and without warning and we have learnt from Christchurch that it is critical we prepare.”

The new trucks are an investment of about $1.5 million, funded from donations from other Red Cross national societies.

“Due to our location New Zealand is vulnerable to a range of natural hazards, and climate change is likely to increase their frequency and intensity, so it is critical we all be prepared. Red Cross is now more prepared than ever to respond.”

In this issue we unveil our brand new mobile welfare centres. The first truck will also be heading to the Canterbury A&P Show in November.

We’re also being inundated with requests to bring back Australian disaster psychologist Dr Rob Gordon after his recent sessions with affected communities, bereaved families, and recovery workers. And we are proud to announce the Red Cross recovery team has won two international awards.

corinne.ambler@redcross.org.nz

In this issue Brand new mobile welfare centre launched Expert in disaster psychology visits Christchurch Red Cross wins two international awards

¡ Some of the truck’s contents – including bedding for 150 people.

More help with storage costs

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NEW ZEALAND RED CROSS ELIZABETH MCNAUGHTON – NATIONAL RECOVERY MANAGER The good news is there is so much we can do to mitigate, prepare and adapt.

ELIZABETH MCNAUGHTON NATIONAL RECOVERY MANAGER

It is with these issues in mind that we launched our award-winning Red Cross torch radio programme.

Creating a safer world will take vision, commitment and our best talent.

This year we have held 260 community presentations for schoolchildren, the elderly, refugees and migrants, people with disabilities and council housing tenants.

October 13 was the international day for disaster risk reduction.

So far 35,000 torch radios have been distributed through an amazing team of trained volunteers.

We recognise that risk is a dominant theme of our age – be it earthquakes, climate change, increased urbanisation, population growth, environmental degradation or terrorism.

We live in an increasingly risk-prone, uncertain and inter-connected world. In 2011 alone, almost 30,000 people were killed in 302 disasters, and 206 million people were affected.

I would like to acknowledge Civil Defence for their guidance and materials in support of this programme.

We are now looking to the future and at what more we can do to integrate disaster risk reduction into all our recovery work – to do our bit towards developing a Canterbury that is the most prepared region in New Zealand.

Not only will it save lives but it will save money. As the World Bank says, for every dollar invested in minimising risk, about seven dollars will be saved in economic losses from disasters.

So we will be talking with communities, our volunteers and agencies to develop more programmes under the preparedness pillar of our recovery framework.

We welcome your ideas, commitment and talent to work towards a more resilient Canterbury.

International disaster risk reduction day is a day to remember that creating a resilient world starts with each and every one of us!

Elizabeth McNaughton

GUEST Column

Jerry Talbot former secretarygeneral (CEO) of new Zealand red cross

International experience following large scale disasters has taught us that people and communities recover best when they are put in the driver’s seat. In short, they need to own their recovery.

The role of Red Cross is to assist people to get back on their feet so they take charge of rebuilding their lives.

As a member of the Red Cross Earthquake Commission, I have been privileged to see how important cash grants have been in helping people through tough times and in raising morale. Until an individual’s or family’s basic needs are met, there is little prospect of turning attention to rebuilding one’s life.

Cash grants are increasingly a feature of international Red Cross recovery programming. They help those affected by disaster to cover their own costs and meet their own needs in a way that least takes away their dignity and keeps them in the driver’s seat.

Those who have worked overseas in large scale disasters gain valuable experience and knowledge about best practice.

We deployed a former Water and Sanitation delegate to Christchurch after the February earthquake to manage the Red Cross support in this sector.

And our National Recovery Manager Elizabeth McNaughton is also an experienced international Red Cross delegate. The blending of international and domestic experience in New Zealand Red Cross has surely enhanced the quality of our assistance to Christchurch and has provided some “lessons learned” to some developed sister Red Cross societies that realise they

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have missed opportunities in this respect.

A few weeks ago, I was able to accompany some of our Red Cross volunteers on home visits. I was reminded about how uniquely we are placed with our members and volunteers living in the same neighbourhoods to be part of that process of rekindling hope and rebuilding lives. I feel sure the Red Cross volunteers’ ongoing support will play an important part in a community-led recovery of Christchurch.

Jerry Talbot is a former Red Cross CEO and aid worker, and led the 2004 Asian tsunami recovery for the IFRC. He also led the review team that evaluated the Japanese Red Cross response to the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. He is a member of the New Zealand Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Commission and is a New Zealand Red Cross counsellor of honour.

Recovery NEWSLETTER October 2012 Programmes

Visiting Australian psychologist tells it like it is I have never had so many thank you letters for anything I have organised.”

Public meetings were held in two areas badly affected by the earthquakes – Kaiapoi and Brighton, where 106 members of the public attended.

A session was also held for around 160 volunteers and staff working in recovery, and another for 30 bereaved family members and those seriously injured and/or their carers.

Here are some of their comments: “Well, a lot of things make a lot more sense now! Rob Gordon tells it like it is.” ¡ Dr Rob Gordon being briefed before the Christchurch meetings.

Community forums held in Canterbury this month by visiting Australian expert on mass trauma, Dr Rob Gordon, have been deemed an outstanding success by many of the 306 people who attended.

Dr Gordon is a clinical psychologist with more than 25 years’ experience from more than 30 disasters in Australia and New Zealand. He has provided support to communities affected by disasters such as the

Black Saturday bushfires, the Bali bombings and the recent Queensland and Victoria floods.

New Zealand Red Cross bereaved support coordinator Julie Gaudin organised Dr Gordon’s visit.

“I found his insights really helpful and useful for my work.”

“It is helpful and in a way normalises what many in our communities (and indeed ourselves) are experiencing.”

“It really has been an incredible success. The overwhelming feedback is that everybody who attended has been touched in a different way.

“It was a much needed wake up call to personal action, and will result in a couple of key changes within my own routine that will help keep me safe and thriving while I assist others who have been affected by trauma.”

“Everybody has taken away their own message depending on where they are in their own personal recovery.

There have been many requests for Red Cross to keep bringing speakers like Dr Gordon back to Christchurch.

grants The New Zealand Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Commission approved a second round of Winter Assistance for those who received the grant in 2012. The $400 grant closed on October 1, and the second payment will be put directly into people’s electricity accounts.

¡ The crowd at the Aurora Centre recovery workers’ session.

The Commission also raised the value of the Storage grant from $500 to $1,000.

For more information go to www.redcross.org.nz and click on grants.

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NEW ZEALAND RED CROSS Recovery NEWSLETTER October 2012 STAFF PROFILE

Julie Gaudin Julie Gaudin recently joined New Zealand Red Cross in Christchurch as Bereaved Support Coordinator.

¡ A member of the Bhutanese community reaches for torch radio instructions written in Sanskrit.

New Zealand Red Cross wins two international awards The New Zealand Red Cross recovery team has just won two major awards from the International Association of Emergency Managers (Oceania division).

provided some of the preparedness material used at the presentations.

The first is the Partners in Preparedness Award which the IAEM has given to Red Cross for its torch radio outreach programme.

Since the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, Red Cross has distributed more than 35,000 torch radios to schoolchildren, the elderly, people with disabilities, migrants and refugees at 260 community events.

Its partner at some of the events has been the Christchurch City Council, which has helped Red Cross reach needy people. Civil Defence also

New Zealand Red Cross has also won an IAEM (Oceania region) Public Awareness Award for its recovery communications programme, alerting people in Canterbury to the help they can still access from Red Cross.

To date 88,881 individuals and families have received grants totalling $75 million.

“I am extremely proud of the recovery team, whose priority every day is to offer assistance to and build resilience among those affected by the earthquakes,” says New Zealand Red Cross chief executive John Ware.

To see the video created especially for the awards click on the link below. http://youtu.be/Sg1WFvSFne

KEY STATISTICS

75

$

million distributed in grants

88,881 2,365 2,945 grants recipients

outreach visits

door knocks

35,757

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torch radios distributed

Her role is to support those whose loved ones died in the earthquake by organising regular support groups, retreats, and sessions with experts who can help them deal with their loss.

She also helps bereaved families with issues like getting through hearings such as that into the recent CTV building collapse, what to do with their loved one’s Facebook page, and how to handle grieving in the public eye.

Julie says the best part of her job is working for an organisation that most people in Canterbury like and respect.

“I am looking forward to working together with the recovery team on projects that will benefit Christchurch, my home of 13 years.”

Contact National Office PO Box 12140 Wellington 69 Molesworth Street Thorndon Wellington 6144 Phone 04 471 8250 Email national@redcross.org.nz Website www.redcross.org.nz