BEVS

Aucklanders.

This was our Nelson/Tasman area back in August so we know the power of the storms and the devastation caused.

Thinking of you guys up there and wishing/hoping that you all keep safe. well and have no damage.

Justcol

Sadly these 100 year weather events are becoming annual occurrancies

BEVS

Absolutely.

Bo-Jangles

and worse ... Wayne Brown

As if the situation were not bad enough; he's clearly off his rocker and could not spare one shred of compassion for the poor buggers that have had their homes destroyed.

LittleGreyCat

Thankfully we are still south of Auckland and on the side of a hill at the moment looking over the water at Thames.
The rain was very heavy and also very noisy on the tin roof.
However no flooding.

Justcol

I watched his press conference and despite him not being as comfortable a public speaker as his predecessor, I couldn't see much wrong with it.
The rain wasn't his fault and the response will have been lead by the heads of the relevant emergency services, not him. He answered what he could and other questions were answered by other heads of service's.
His comments about houses not being built where they are was bang on. If you build on a cliff edge in a country full of earthquakes and land slips, don't be surprised when you house ends up in the valley below.

Moon_River

My sister in law lives in Silverdale, Auckland. Both ends of her road are flooded. She's glad she left work early on Friday as she travels by public transport.

Her home is ok but she was glad that her husband drives a 4 x 4 when they went to collect their daughter from her after school job on Friday evening.

She said she was having wine for dinner. Note, not wine WITH dinner !

LittleGreyCat

In Thames at the moment.
Motels are filling up with stranded airline passengers because apparently Auckland is full.
I suspect that they are picking up cancellations from holidaymakers.
Not the best holiday weekend.

BEVS

Hunker down Mr & Mrs LittleGreyCat. More is on the way.

BEVS

I like her style. I hope her home , the road and the surrounding area doesn't suffer worse. I know though that more 'weather' is yet to come.

BEVS

He is inexperienced and perhaps was not certain of what his role as a mayor is here, which was and is to act as lead . Make decisions. Re-assure. Bring co-hesion. Be seen to be decisive and be seen to - ums - care . Not get testy. He should have briefed himself to come across as knowledgeable and informed . He was floundering. That's fine if it is not his thing BUT people - ratepayers - needed him to be a clear , front man. They actually pay for that assuredly. That he has the helm of a large ship and that he is listening to his information informers and informing his crew. Forthright is fine. Grumpy and passing the baton is not fine. Not in those/these circumstances. I am not at all sure why he did not avail himself of learning any ropes in this. How it actually works. What he needs to do. It is important.

The general emergency response to an event is led by first response units at the outset. The point it tips to state of emergency ( in NZ) is when all units are at saturation point ( pun not intended) . It was his to call if he so chose. He was being given all the information. He did not call until late. Probably because someone was more than SHOUTING in his earholes by then to CALL IT, not expecting the Mayor to sit on his hands. There is and are protocols of course. However my feeling is he sat on hands waiting for someone to tell him what he should be doing as Mayor rather than acting for the good of his people as Mayor. He is paid to be a Mayor.

In emergency response it is preferable to call somewhat earlier, in daylight and in this case before a bluddy high tide. Having written that, one could say damned if he called 5 hours earlier and damned as he did not. What is certain is that everyone, but everyone, knew and knows what that weather event was going to do up front. Better to have response in daylight hours IMVHO .

At the moment he needs to keep his personal comments on people's personal losses to himself. It has no place at all.

Overall for me, he looks weak at a coalface. A bit of hot air but not much else. Hopefully he will now knuckle down and understand that local government means just that. Government. Not some bloke giving testy one offs. Government means managing people, expectations, results and communication. Communication means explaining, understanding ,listening , hearing and letting that be seen to be so.

It was his to call.

Bo-Jangles

There simply was nothing BEVS, a few tweets from Waka Kotahi for people to head out early to see Elton John at 7pm, when people were already waist deep in water in a lot of places. That call to cancel should have been made well before people started entering the bloody stadium. There was no communications and that responsibility surely lies with Wayne Brown or someone from his office to front up with some basic advise on where to get help etc.

The countdown to chaos

Charismatic

The dams are full though: https://www.watercare.co.nz/Water-an...d-s-dam-levels

BEVS

The Elton John concert(s)

The shows would have been automatically cancelled upon the declaration of a State of Emergency had that been made . Until that point there would have been co-ordination and intel exchange between the production/promoters and other agencies. StJohn and the DHB + fire service , security and local EOC unit which would have been monitoring conditions. The Mayor could have called it earlier if he so chose. He did not.

Given the rapid escalation and intel from the MetService this makes sense. They started to activate in readiness for the word .

This on the other hand is beyond dreadful.
I think not. I think they ( the agencies co-ordinating and activating in an EOC) gave him the intel but he didn't process it to act decisively in a timely manner. It wasn't until it was shoved under his nose that he then acted , which may have given him a bad smell as he was calling in a Labour led NEMA. Regardless though, it is a weak leader & person that so readily and so quickly throws members of his own council and team under a submerged bus.

On another note. The Nelson/Tasman civil defence units have asked for volunteers to help aid and relieve if needed. I expect other South Island units have done the same. If the next few days are bad then it will depend on what areas are hit and how. For instance if the SI West Coast is hit again then the agencies will be spread thin.


Edit to add..

Wayne Brown was photo'd sitting in his Mayoral office. He should have been in the EOC.

Justcol

Of course it has to be someone's fault, I mean rain on a scale that has NEVER been seen before doesn't just happen does it. Someone must be to blame.

Would calling a state of emergency earlier have made the slightest bit if difference... No