Tsunami evacuation lines mapped nationwide – is your home or workplace in the danger zone?

Wednesday, 20 July 2022

Check whether your home or workplace falls into the tsunami danger zone with a new website, released by Government today.

A new map that shows the country’s tsunami danger zones will help people understand when to evacuate.

“In an emergency every second counts,' Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty said. “So it’s crucial people have a plan in place before something happens.”

People can enter their address into the map that uses data from 16 regional evacuation maps and local evacuation information and receive advice on when to leave home or work.

“This map makes it easier for people to know where their closest safe ground is, and to have a plan to get there,”

Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty says don’t wait till it's happening to make a plan for evacuation.

Minister McAnulty visited scientists at Niwa on Wednesday morning to hear about work on the DART sensor network.

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McAnulty visited Niwa and spoke to the scientists working on tsunami sensor networks on Wednesday morning.

The science organisation estimated m ore than 430,000 Kiwis – 9 per cent of the population – live in tsunami evacuation zones. The areas contain 490,000 buildings, of which 400,000 are residential. The zones also include 6370km of roads, 411km of railway lines, and Auckland and Wellington airports.

The map is another tool in the toolkit, adding to existing measures – the National Geohazards Monitoring Centre, the DART (Deep-ocean assessment and reporting of tsunamis) sensor network to provide early warning of threats, and the emergency mobile alert system.

Last month, the National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) opened a 24-7 Monitoring, Alerting and Reporting (MAR) Centre, in which staff provide round-the-clock monitoring and assessment of potential hazards.

“You shouldn’t wait until an emergency to check whether you’re in a tsunami evacuation zone – there is no better time than now to make sure you’re prepared and your plan is up-to-date to keep you and your whānau safe,” McAnulty said.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story said McAnulty visited Niwa to speak with scientists who helped create the map. This was incorrect – the visit was related to the DART network of marine tsunami sensors. Niwa is not involved in the map, which is overseen by Nema, in collaboration with Civil Defence Emergency Management Groups. (Amended August 21, 2022, 9.26am).