Kris Faafoi: What can Kiwis and politicians take from mother nature’s fury?

Tuesday, 14 February 2023

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins describes the sitation across the North Island and acknowledges the work of first responders.

Kris Faafoi is a government and public relations specialist; a former Labour member of Parliament and a former Cabinet minister (including Minister of Civil Defence); and a former Press Gallery journalist. He will be a regular opinion contributor to Stuff.

OPINION: Cyclone Gabrielle has been devastating. As I write, Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty is holding a press conference after declaring a national state of emergency, just the third in our nation’s history.

In the past month, mother nature has hammered the north of the North Island. Communities that two months ago were havens for holidaymakers now face a gargantuan clean-up and some difficult conversations about their future.

The next days, months and years are going to be difficult. The clean-up, response and rebuild after Cyclone Gabrielle will be like nothing we have seen before.

* $11.5m for cyclone response as Chris Hipkins warns there's worse to come

Amber and Paul Rhodes embrace after running from their home, which got washed onto the road after heavy rain in Karekare, west Auckland, during Cyclone Gabrielle.

* Cyclone Gabrielle: Nervous wait for 'worst day' as thousands without power

* 'Sit up and take notice' of Cyclone Gabrielle, Minister Kieran McAnulty says

Our hearts go out to those who have had homes and communities devastated.

Despite some hiccups around the Auckland Anniversary Weekend flood comms (and I credit Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown for his apology, as well as his communication and preparation for Gabrielle), the readiness for this weather event has been well executed.

Cyclone Gabrielle caused widespread flooding of Hawke's Bay rivers – an experience we are bound to see more frequently.

New Zealanders are resilient, but when we lose the basics of life it only takes an instant for normality to become brittle. The possibility of it not returning for some time piles up considerable levels of stress for families, businesses and communities who are now donning their gumboots and gloves to start a clean-up.

There will be a realisation to those who have felt the whip of Cyclone Gabrielle at the most basic level, that being prepared makes a massive difference; that at the end of the day, hunkering down and being ready for yourself, your whānau and the neighbourhood is all that a family unit can do.

Do we have food? Do we have water? Can we cook if the power goes out? How do I charge my phone? Is the elderly neighbour across the road OK? What do we need if we get told to evacuate? Where do we go if we evacuate? I wish I hadn’t used all the matches in the survival kit at Guy Fawkes!

These are the basic questions we all ask ourselves, usually too late.

The most critical question is, can we survive for a week if help isn’t able to get to us?

The reality is, these events are more and more likely to occur.

We know the “once in a (insert timeframe here) events” are occurring more frequently and will continue to do so.

The aftermath of Christchurch’s February 22, 2011 earthquake.

Extreme weather patterns are going to be more, let's say, extreme.

And mother nature has a penchant for throwing events such as earthquakes, volcanic activity and large-scale fires in just when we don’t want them.

One of life’s many truths is that it is not the event that matters, it’s how we respond to it.

In the event of an emergency, everyone has a responsibility to take responsibility for themselves.

I am not saying we all need to build nuclear-armageddon bunkers.

Kris Faafoi was a minister in the Labour Cabinet until his resignation from Parliament last year. He is now a government and public relations specialist, and an opinion contributor to Stuff.

But having a plan, having an emergency kit, having a chat as a family, as co-workers, as a school community and as neighbours will make a massive difference to how families and communities can survive an emergency.

This small stuff is important because I can guarantee something big will happen in the lifetime of the kids who started school this year that will be devastating to hundreds of thousands, if not millions of New Zealanders.

Just google AF8 and you’ll understand.

That’s my message to the readers. So here is my message to local and central government.

Put more emphasis on resourcing emergency readiness, response and recovery.

Our regional civil defence groups have done a good job with available resources to meet their dual mandate to prepare communities for emergencies, and to ensure that when an emergency occurs, the formal structure is there that can stand up and respond

In that area, I tried and somewhat succeeded as Minister of Civil Defence, but it's clear the future demands on these resources are likely to be significant and that more can be done in “peace time” to get communities better prepared.

Yes, we’ve seen the ads about long, strong, get gone; and drop, cover and hold. And yes, more funding has gone into emergency management.

But the last few weeks are another reminder that we can all be better prepared – not just as families, or neighbourhoods, but as a country. And for what is likely to come, we need to be.

We know the volunteers and professionals tasked with helping others in emergencies are going to be called on much more.

So decision makers, let’s assist them now to get all Kiwis ready for the disasters that are yet to come.