15 August 2010

Dr. Grant Gillon, North Shore City Councillor, Chair of the Strategy and Finance Committee and (by rotation) Member Birkenhead/Northcote Community Board

North Shore’s Civil Defence Proposals a Disaster In The Making!

“North Shore residents have a right to know about the future of civil defence in our city” said North Shore City councillor and Chair of the Strategy and Finance Committee, Grant Gillon.

"Secret proposals leaked today reveal that the Auckland Transition Agency is proposing to close North Shore’s Civil Defence Operations Centre on East Coast Road," said Grant Gillon.

“Leaked documents and proposals show quite clearly that Civil Defence operations centres will be only retained at Waitakere, Manukau, Central Auckland and Orewa. There is nothing planned for the North Shore!”

“I am certain that most North Shore residents will be appalled at being left without emergency support by these secret plans, says former firefighter and North Shore City Councillor Grant Gillon.

The North Shore Civil Defence Operations Centre on East Coast Road is reputed to currently have the most resources in the region. It is elevated high on a ridge providing excellent communications. It has a specially designated building on, and its elevation allows it to avoid disasters such as tsunamis.

The Rodney facility is just above sea level, on a flood plain and has difficult radio reception around its territory.

North Shore is the 4th largest city in the country and yet the Transition Agency is looking to Orewa to run our emergencies. There are only two main road accesses between the two communities, both of which could be severed creating access issues. Both Waitakere and Auckalnd Central also have only one main access via bridges.

“North Shore needs its own co-ordinating and operations centre. We cannot expect our volunteers to travel to Orewa to train. We need to nurture our Civil Defence volunteers on the Shore, in their own communities.

The current plans can only ensure that the current high level of Civil Defence readiness will diminish, that the quarter of a million North Shore residents will receive much less help in an emergency, and the Civil Defence response times will lengthen

This situation is untenable” said Dr Gillon.

ENDS

© Scoop Media