First line of defence

Southern suburbs are first to work out local civil defence plans in a scheme that will go Auckland-wide, Gia Dumo and Rowena Orejana report.

Jonathan Lowe is not afraid of water, which is just as well because he's an Auckland Council swimming pool inspector. He's not afraid of earthquakes or storms, either.
Mr Lowe has been a member of RT5, the North Shore-based Urban Search and Rescue Team, for more than six years. He has trained in pre-hospital medical care, rope rescue, searching in collapsed buildings and storm response, among other scenarios.
Last week, he returned with 14 others from flood-devastated Queensland where they'd spent 12 days doing clean-up and recovery work.
"There was so much water everywhere that travelling was difficult. Roads were closed and, at times, we had to abandon our five 4WDs and go by boat.
"The concept that a river can rise 15m out of its bed and flood through homes, sweeping cars, water tanks and other property completely away, was new to us," he says.
Emergency preparedness is among the key initiatives Mayor Len Brown has listed to deal with for his first 100 days in office.
To begin with, Civil Defence Neighbourhood Response Plans - the first of their kind in the region - are being drawn up for eight communities, including Kawakawa Bay, Wiri and Greenmount.
Auckland Civil Defence controller Clive Manley says communities isolated by big incidents need to be able to take care of themselves for at least three days.
"There is no plan that has looked at it from the whole aspect of Auckland, what could impact on us and how we could manage for a number of days," he says. "This is what's new with the plan. It is going to make communities stronger."
Each plan is unique to its community. "Each of them would identify different things that could impact on them. Then, we look at their resources and see how they can manage things."
Mr Manley says necessities in a disaster are: shelter, water and food. The plans will make it easier to help communities reach emergency services.
Workshops have been held for the eight communities and two plans completed (outside Manukau are Snells Beach/Mahurangi, Waiheke Island, Great Barrier Island and Omaha).
A further four plans are expected to be completed by the end of June.
"What we do is we support them and help them along," he explains. "We ask the questions, but it's actually the community that comes up with the answers. They know how strong they are and what their weaknesses are."
Mr Manley says Kawakawa Bay is the most practised, having drawn up and tested their emergency plans for coping with a tsunami.
Ron Kemp, a resident of Kawakawa Bay for 30 years, says it's still early days. "We'll be self-sufficient in an emergency, but this is about getting organised," he says.
Mr Manley says the eight communities were chosen because they already have some sort of structure in place. The Great Barrier and Waiheke islands were obvious choices as they would be isolated by an emergency and have reasonable response structures. A number of communities have already expressed interest.
"It's much easier to work with a community that wants to engage rather than trying to start them up for the first time," he says. "Hopefully, this will take on a life of its own."
Are you ready?
New research shows Auckland residents are poorly prepared for a disaster. The 2010 data from Colmar Brunton's "preparedness research" shows just 9 per cent of respondents are "fully prepared" for a disaster. Being fully prepared means having an emergency survival plan that includes what to do when away from home, having emergency survival items and water, and regularly updating these items.
Auckland Civil Defence and Emergency Management controller Clive Manley says the results are disappointing. "Although some of the figures have increased since 2007 - the benchmark year before the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management began its 'Get Ready Get Thru' information campaign - they are still low," he says.
The report indicates 18 per cent of Aucklanders are prepared at home, 40 per have a plan, and 75 per cent have survival items.
It also notes the fully prepared New Zealanders are more likely to be older, earn higher household income, and proficient in speaking English.
Aucklanders are also more likely to admit they are not very well or not at all prepared for a disaster (54 per cent; national average 48 per cent).
However, Aucklanders are less likely to believe people should check on family, friends or neighbours following an earthquake (25 per cent; national average 31 per cent). - Gia Dumo.