Council News

In an emergency, it’s all hands on deck

In the North Island, this summer has been possibly the wettest in living memory, bringing cyclones, flooding and damage to our infrastructure, homes, businesses and farms – not to mention heartache.

Clearly the future is going to require all of us to be better prepared for the unexpected.

As a Council, we have specific roles in the community. We are responsible for:

• District well-being

• Local infrastructure

• Environmental safety & health

Doing your bit

The better prepared we all are, the better we will be able to help authorities if disaster strikes. We ask you to think about the “4 Rs”:

Reduction – As a community, can we work together to prevent risk to life and property?

Readiness – Do you have food, water, and communication tools? Do you have a plan to get home? Do you know who your neighbours are?

Response – Does your community know what action to take immediately, during or after an emergency?

Recovery – How do we move forward as a community to recover?

And as individuals, there’s a lot we can all do to be ready:

• Have an agreed safe meeting place for your household

• Know your neighbours

• Keep a working radio and batteries - cell phone towers may be down

• Have water, food and some cash stored away safely in case roads are cut off, stores are closed, or electricity is down.

• If you are on medications, make sure you have plenty and take it with you if you leave

• Have a grab bag of essentials including a torch,

• District civil defence emergency management preparedness and response

• Building control, public health inspections and other environmental health matters

• Controlling the effects of land use, including natural hazards water, ready-to-eat food, cash, medicine, contact numbers and important documents

However, in an emergency, our efforts and those of our emergency services will not be enough. First responders will need to prioritise the most urgent callouts and supplies may take time to arrive. Everyone will have to pitch in.

Part of our role is to ensure our communities are well prepared.

• Subscribe to the Council’s e-mail service for urgent alerts

• Check the MetService for weather and swell warnings when heading out WREMO provides some great advice to help you create a plan for your household at wremo.nz/create-ahousehold-plan

Sandbags

During several recent floods, the Council has fielded a number of enquiries about sandbags.

While the Council does not supply sandbags, a community effort in Featherston has secured a stock of these and they are made available when needed at the local community hub. In other locations, you could improvise by filling sacks with whatever suitable material comes to hand.

Community hubs

In most cases, all the skilled people you need in an emergency are already in your community. Community hubs provide guidance on how communities can selfco-ordinate, should they need to. There is a hub in each of our three towns, and they are activated by Civil Defence.

It’s important to note that hubs are not places of shelter per se, but they are places to ask for and offer help, and to

Notice Of Meetings

Meeting agendas are available for inspection at least two days before the meeting at the district libraries, Council offices and at www.swdc.govt.nz

Public participation is welcome. If you wish to speak during the public participation session at any of the below meetings, please phone 06 306 9611 at least 24 hours prior to the meeting or email enquiries@ swdc.govt.nz co-ordinate an emergency response.

Masks are available for those in attendance. If you have cold and flu symptoms, please stay at home.

The meetings will be livestreamed on our YouTube Channel, where possible.

Community Boards have agreed to use a variety of formats to engage locally. These opportunities will be promoted via social media and your local free newsletters.

They contain a basic kit including an AM/FM radio, maps and a Civil Defence VHF radio that allows communication with the wider office response if phones are down.

Read more at wremo.nz/find-your-hub Hubs may move to another venue if necessary.

Working together to recover

Recent weather events have demonstrated how important it is for communities, councils and agencies to come together. The kind of support provided will depend on the situation. During Cyclones Hale and Gabrielle, an Emergency Operations Centre was stood up to co-ordinate relief efforts, bringing together all the key players.

Such an approach makes a huge difference to our response and recovery.

April Meetings

COUNCIL ORDINARY

Wednesday, 5 April at 10am Supper Room, Waihinga Centre, Texas Street, Martinborough

MĀORI STANDING COMMITTEE

Thursday, 27 April at 6pm Supper Room, Waihinga Centre, Texas Street, Martinborough

Harry Wilson CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Water risks

In some emergencies, access to water and water contamination might be real issues. It could be days before a community drinking station is set up, so as a general rule, you should store a week’s worth of water –that’s 140 litres per person.

If a boil notice is issued, the Ministry of Health advice is to boil, cool and pour the water into a clean container to store. It will last up to 3 days in the fridge or 24 hours at room temperature. In flooding situations, people are advised to take great care with personal hygiene and handwashing because of the risk of contamination.

For more information, go to wremo.nz/store-water

Mayoral Relief Fund

Have you been affected by Cyclone Gabrielle? You may qualify for help from the Wairarapa Mayoral Relief Fund. Details on the criteria for applications will be on our website or www.mstn.govt.nz shortly.

If you have any welfare issues relating to accommodation, food or other needs, please call 0800 239 247. As Wairarapa transitions from response to recovery, monetary donations are much appreciated if you have the means.

If you would like to contribute directly to the fund, donations can be made to:

Masterton District Council

Westpac Account 03-0687-0271682-03

Reference ‘WAISTORM

Kitchener Street revamp

Waka Kotahi is planning to resurface a stretch of Martinborough’s Kitchener Street. This work is planned for 20-24 March, weather and resources permitting. The work would improve the condition of the highway, moving in stages from Memorial Square to Princess St. When it is underway, drivers may find themselves diverted away from Kitchener Street.

Waka Kotahi thanks people for their patience and says the result will be worthwhile.

For enquiries, please email customer@wta.nzta.govt.nz