Civil defence says be prepared

 

Northlanders may have had more than their share of storms lately, but they are still being encouraged to give a thought to how they would handle natural disasters and other hazards as part of the upcoming national Get Ready Week.

The annual event is organised by the Ministry of Civil Defence & emergency Management and local Civil Defence emergency Management (CDeM)

groups (including Northland) to raise awareness of potential hazards and the need to be prepared.

Councillor Paul Dimery, who represents the Northland Regional Council on the Northland CDeM Group Committee, says the theme for this year’s Get Ready Week, which runs from September 21-27, is ‘What would you do?’

Locally, the Northland CDeM Group will be posting daily messages and challenges from 21 September at facebook.com/civildefencenorthland, as well as asking people to share their best tips for coping with events like the recent storms that have battered the region. in the Whangarei District, officials would also have a Civil Defence-themed display in the city’s Cameron St Mall on September 24 from 11am to 2pm.

Councillor Dimery says when it comes to preparedness, Northlanders need to be proactive not apathetic.

“Being prepared for all eventualities is what makes Kiwis’ ‘can do’ attitude,” he says.

“everyone has their own special abilities which can be utilised to prepare, respond and recover from a Civil Defence emergency.

A range of information about Get Ready Week is available online from getthru.govt.nz including a range of scenarios asking how people might cope with disasters such as a large earthquake, severe storm, volcanic eruption, tsunami or pandemic.

„ General Civil Defence information online at facebook.com/civildefencenorthland, nrc. govt.nz/civildefence, or getthru.govt.nz.