Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier has met with Karekare residents following Cyclone Gabrielle. (Source: Supplied)
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The Chief Ombudsman has published a report raising concern at the response, recovery and readiness of New Zealand's emergency management processes as extreme weather events become "more frequent and severe".
Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier said there is "still work to do" to ensure New Zealand has a resilient and robust emergency management system.
He visited some of the areas in the North Island hardest hit by flooding earlier this year as he said he wanted to hear from "as many voices as possible" .
Boshier met with key government agencies, councils, iwi and community organisations for his ‘insights and observations’ report to better understand "the extent of the devastation" within complaints being brought to him.
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Christine and David Sidwell told the Ombudsman they spent six hours trapped in their Karekare home. (Source: Supplied)
Karekare couple share their survival story
Karekare residents David and Christine Sidwell shared their story of survival with the Ombudsman, recounting the harrowing experience of being asleep when Cyclone Gabrielle struck and their house slid down a hill.
"Our house was steel-framed… The chunk of the steel frame came up through the floor, through the middle of our bed and tossed me out," David said.
Christine described how "everything was smashed" as the couple inspected the damage, discovering walls split away from the sloping floor as they shone their torches around.
"We got dressed and it was so cold we put on layers and layers of clothing. We shone our torches around. The rain was horrific... We realised that the house was way above the slip," she said.
David said there was at least a four-metre drop at that point from the house down to the ground with mud and water flowing down the steep slope.
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As Christine was recovering from an operation, the couple weren’t able to get out by themselves and spent about six hours trapped in their home before a neighbour came to their rescue using a plank of wood.
Christine said once they’d escaped, their experience with councils and emergency personnel was "utterly beautiful," and said they "cannot fault the recovery."
"We are [an example of one of] the most extreme cases in terms of we’ve lost everything, land, house, possessions, everything. We are still in the valley. We were looked after beautifully," she said.
Identifying areas of improvement
Boshier said bad weather will become more "frequent and severe" and events such as this will be an increasing part of our reality.
"Now is the time to look at our model for how New Zealand prepares for and copes with disaster.
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"My report lays out the voices of the people who suffered during the devastating storms. It highlights where things didn’t work so well and also outlines where New Zealand got it right. One of those areas is the devolution of tasks and roles at a local level," he said.
Boshier emphasised that his report did not contain recommendations as it is not the result of a formal investigation, however he did identify "a number of issues and areas for improvement".
"I share people’s concerns, and by highlighting them, I hope this report will provide the new government, councils and other organisations with some valuable insights in terms of both managing the recovery effort this time around and preparing for the next event," he said.
Boshier listed clear, timely and accessible communications from both central and local government agencies as an area to improve upon for a fundamental and effective response in times of such stress and uncertainty.
"Councils and central government agencies were also experiencing frustrations of their own... many told me how thinly spread they were during and after the storms and some were also personally affected by the devastation," he said.
"I want to acknowledge the commitment of those involved in the response and recovery efforts; I saw that everyone wants to do the right thing."
Boshier also identified disabled communities, older people and those who don't speak English as a first language as "particularly at risk" of not having information flow to them during the cyclone.
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"Isolation was incredibly difficult for people, especially in communities that were cut off for weeks or were hard-to-reach... Some felt abandoned. People are concerned about land categorisations, buy-backs, and insurance. The importance of clear and easily accessible disputes resolution processes was evident."
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