Whanganui Neighbourhood Support aims to boost membership after Cyclone Gabrielle devastation

Working together to connect the community are (from left) Jill Stitchbury, Anthony Edwards, Tim Crowe, Constable Keith Thomson (Tomo), Mayor Andrew Tripe, Shirley Forward and Debbie Mortensen. Photo / Eva de Jong

Whanganui Neighbourhood Support is urgently calling for new members with an initiative called Hello Neighbour, after witnessing Cyclone Gabrielle’s impact on rural communities.

Neighbourhood Support area co-ordinator Debbie Mortensen said Hello Neighbour would expand their database and allow for information from the police and Civil Defence to be more easily distributed.

“I want people to be aware that in an emergency or a Civil Defence matter, they’re not alone,” Mortensen said.

“We have the ability to send warnings out by phone or email to our members if, say, the river flooded or there was a major earthquake.”

Currently, there are between 4000 and 5000 members in Whanganui, but the group would like to expand this number.

Becoming a member of Neighbourhood Support is free and people who sign up receive a monthly newsletter by email which covers useful information such as how to prepare your house for winter or where to go to learn new computer skills.

Mortensen said it was important to get the message out that Neighbourhood Support was not just for the elderly, but for every member of the community.

“It could be a solo mum who has got young kids but feels they can’t ask anyone for help - well, we’re here to offer support.”

Senior Community Constable Keith Thomson said Neighbourhood Support members often kept an eye on each other’s properties when a neighbour was on holiday.

“It’s not just about emergencies, we also want people to feel safer in the community.”

Thomson said Neighbourhood Support also gave talks to neighbourhoods about specific issues they might be facing and how to report them correctly.

Whanganui District Council’s Civil Defence emergency manager, Tim Crowe, said households should try to be prepared for unforeseen disasters as best they could.

“If you look at the Hawke’s Bay, power’s down, eftpos is down, petrol stations and cellphones are down. So if the power went off at 2am tomorrow morning it’s what you would need to be able to go for between three days to a week without getting any outside help.

“The more people in the community that don’t need help, the more we can focus what limited resources we have on helping those people directly impacted more effectively.”

Neighbourhood Support chairwoman Shirley Forward said the group prevented people from being isolated in the community by connecting them with other members.

“It would be wonderful if we had every street involved in Whanganui.”

To join Whanganui Neighbourhood Support call (06) 344 6746 or 027 284 0555, email nsg.wang@xtra.co.nz or visit their Facebook page.

For more information about how to prepare your household for an emergency and a list of recommended supplies visit the Civil Defence page at www.whanganui.govt.nz.