Is your business prepared for a natural disaster?

One of the following could strike Mangawhai at any time: flood, cyclone, tsunami, earthquake, or volcanic eruption. Is your business prepared? 

Are you a tourism operator? Do you have a plan for you and your visitors/customers to survive for at least 72 hours without help? Do you have a contingency plan to ensure your business recovers quickly from an emergency?  

A small group of interested business people met last week at the Mangawhai Fire Station and were given a powerpoint presentation by Northland Civil Defence Emergency Management (NCDEM) consultant, Alastair Wells. 

Community plan

Alastair outlined Northland’s Civil Defence strategy which recognises that many communities in Northland can be isolated during an emergency event making it imperative that communities can survive with little or no outside assistance during this time. Councils have been addressing these issues by working with local communities to formulate Community Response Plans. 

Some years ago a Mangawhai Community Response Group was formed, and this group formulated a plan for the local community. 

NCDEM have now identified a need for tourism operators in Northland, and in Mangawhai, to formulate a plan for ensuring the safety and comfort of their domestic and international visitors during an emergency event. In collaboration with Destination Northland they are encouraging local tourism sectors to establish Tourism Cluster Groups, using a response plan template provided by NCDEM, while also co-ordinating with their Community Response Group.

Workshops planned

Alastair will conduct two more workshops in coming weeks. Both will be held at The Club, Molesworth Drive, from 1-3pm. The first, on Wednesday October 10, will be an interactive session focussing on a draft plan and how the plan would work for you in an event. In particular the meeting will look at:

Communication between CDEM and the Mangawhai group 

Integration with existing Community Response Plans 

Information that you will want to access to advise guests/customers and prospective guests/customers 

Identifying the main points of contact in the community for CDEM to advise updates 

Begin work on how your business will respond to an emergency before the business continuity workshops

The second workshop, on Wednesday October 31 (TBC), will provide Business Continuity Training – how to survive an emergency.

If you are interested in being part of the Tourism Cluster Group or you are keen to learn more about protecting your business during and after an emergency event,  then please ring Jeannette Forde on 431 5311 or Alison Cox on 431 5654.