Finishing touches being put on government funded disaster pods

As Hawke’s Bay seeks to heed the lessons of Cyclone Gabrielle, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is funding community groups to come up with their own disaster solutions.

The independent review by
Mike Bush of Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence emergency management during the cyclone was released in Napier on Monday afternoon.

A couple of streets away, the finishing touches were being put on an MPI-funded Emergency and Disaster Resilience pod for installation in rural Wairarapa.

Bush’s report largely steered clear of apportioning blame for the events of February 14, 2023, instead focusing on making sure this region has better systems in place to cope with the next natural disaster.

To that end, MPI is assisting Hawke’s Bay company EPOD to give communities autonomy for their own disaster-preparedness.

Recently-released lottery funding, via the Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Trust, is another avenue, with EPOD’s phones “running hot’’ with inquiries from groups seeking to utilise that to secure their own pod.

Funding from MPI will see nine more EPODs sent to Wairoa – taking the total number of pods in that district to 34 – while planning is in place for installation of another at Dartmoor.

The MPI money is courtesy of the North Island Weather Events Rural Communities Recovery Fund, which identified that resilience hubs were critical to the first response to a natural disaster.

“Communities need to prepare as if no one’s coming,” EPOD director Lizzie McPhail said.

Reports emerged during Cyclone Gabrielle of isolated communities receiving relief items they didn’t need.

Fuel, though, was often in short supply.

The EPOD that went to Wairarapa on Tuesday contained 250 litres of petrol and supplies – all specifically ordered by the community group themselves – to enable 50 children and 50 adults to survive for seven days.

“So we triage and pack the whole container in terms of order of importance,” operations team member Harry McPhail said.

“Red’s first. That’s your first two hours, so we’ve got all your communications and medical equipment, your defibrillator, your generator, your power.

“Orange is your response, so tools, equipment, lighting and green is your longer term resilience, so food, water, bedding.”

The pods are designed to be operational for 20 years so sleeping bags, for instance, are vacuum packed to help avoid moisture.

Some food will actually last 25 years. Other items have a five to seven-year shelf life, which an email alert will remind you need replacing.

Chainsaws and generators are sourced from local dealerships, who provide instruction on operation and maintenance. Wellington Free Ambulance supplies the defibrillators and provides similar training.

“It’s about giving communities skin in the game and the power to control their own circumstances,” Lizzie McPhail said.