Coastal and isolated communities in South Wairarapa will be better placed to respond to emergency events following the latest donation of resources from the Wairarapa Recovery Office (WRO).
The resources were funded by central government and include shipping containers with a starter kit of essential supplies and equipment to help isolated communities manage immediately after a disaster.
“The donated resources are designed to assist isolated and coastal Wairarapa communities straight after an emergency, when they may be cut off and have limited access to emergency services,” said WRO Programme Manager Simon Taylor.
“This initiative is part of an ongoing combined council programme to build community resilience and equip and resource communities for future disasters following Cyclones Hale and Gabrielle in early 2023.”
WRO, district councils and the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office (WREMO) have been working with communities on the location and contents of the emergency containers, alongside wider emergency preparedness activities.
Tora is among the locations identified for a container. Tora community representative and local Fire Chief Ian Hunter said the donated resources were a welcome addition to the work the community has been doing to prepare for future emergencies.
“As a community that is often isolated during adverse weather events, most permanent residents are well prepared to be self-sufficient for an extended period of time. However, as the number of holiday homes increases, this initiative will help our wider community to mitigate any problems that arise when the next event happens, be it flooding, earthquake or fire. The resources will provide some peace of mind that we have essential supplies on hand to help us get through.
“We’re grateful to WRO, WREMO and South Wairarapa District Council for the resources and for supporting our efforts to ensure we can respond as a community and support each other when an emergency occurs.”
Emergency containers and resources have been donated to seven other communities in the Wairarapa. South Wairarapa District Council Recovery Manager Nigel Carter said discussions were underway with communities in Lake Ferry and Ngawi about the possible location for resource containers in their areas.
“This is a great example of how communities, councils and WREMO can work together to help ensure support is in place across our district for when whānau and communities need it most.”
Along with the shipping containers of supplies, Carter said resources were also donated to some community halls and marae in the district over the past year to better equip them as key community facilities following an emergency event. The donated resources include water tanks, defibrillators (AEDs), and solar and battery back-up for situations when the power supply is disrupted.
“These resources will enhance these facilities for everyday use by the communities in these areas as well as providing a place where people can gather when an emergency happens.
“Members of affected communities coming together to look after each other is an essential part of managing through an emergency, particularly in locations that can be cut off and when emergency services are stretched. Once this initiative is completed, resources will have been installed at nine locations around South Wairarapa.”
The Wairarapa Recovery Office was established in 2023 following cyclones Hale and Gabrielle to coordinate recovery efforts and community resilience activities across the three Wairarapa district councils.
