MEDIA RELEASE

Tuesday, 25 September 2012

Getting ready to get thru

This Wednesday over 63,000 Manawatu-Wanganui residents will drop, cover and hold as part of New Zealand’s first ever nationwide earthquake drill.

Everyone from individuals and families to businesses and media will be testing their preparedness as part of the event, including those involved in emergency response.

Horizons Regional Council emergency manager Shane Bayley describes the ShakeOut drill as a prime opportunity to conduct a small-scale regional exercise and test emergency response plans.

“Like many other organisations, we’ll be evacuating our buildings once we’ve dropped, covered and held and making sure we account for all staff. Then we’ll activate our emergency operations centre and start thinking about what the consequences may be if there had been a major event.”

“We’ll be thinking about how a major quake may have affected lifelines such as power and water, consider whether we’d need to declare a regional emergency and work in with emergency services and the Ministry of Social Development to ensure a coordinated response,” Mr Bayley says.

Local councils throughout the region will also activate their emergency operations centres and share information about the situation in their area via a computer-based system as they would in a real-life event.

“As a region it’s vital we are prepared for any emergency that may come our way. While we have comprehensive plans in place, there’s nothing quite like putting these plans to the test for identifying what’s working well and where we could improve,” Mr Bayley says.

Civil Defence in the Manawatu-Wanganui Region is coordinated by a Civil Defence Emergency Management Group made up of members from Horizons Regional Council, the region’s seven city and district councils, fire and rural fire services, police, ambulance, district health boards, public health and the Ministry of Civil Defence Emergency Management.

This group works together to reduce the potential effects of hazards, promote community and council readiness to respond to emergencies and help the community recover after an event.

NZ ShakeOut is taking place at 9.26am on Wednesday September 26 and those who submit photos of themselves or their workplaces participating to www.facebook.com/horizonsregionalcouncil will go in the draw to win a Grab & Go Emergency Kit.

To find out more or to register for ShakeOut visit www.shakeout.govt.nz

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