Solutions for adverse events in rural communities

Civil Defence, and how it works in our community, may not be well known unless you have been personally helped during an adverse event such as flooding, wildfire, or strong winds.

There are a handful of organisations throughout Nelson and Tasman that meet regularly to prepare and plan in case disasters hit. When they do, these groups also kick into action and work together to respond.

The overarching organisation set up to manage our responses is Nelson Tasman Emergency Management (NTEM), which is based in the Group Emergency Operation Centre (GEOC) in Richmond.

During an event, local emergency operation centres may also be activated in Golden Bay, Murchison, or St Arnaud if required to respond to local emergencies.

“One function of NTEM is looking after the welfare of people adversely affected by an emergency event,” says Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI)’s Jenny Ridgen, based out of the Nelson office, who is also one of the administrators for the local Rural Advisory Group (RAG).

RAG provides information and advice to help prepare for, respond to, and recover from adverse events affecting the primary sector. A key part of the group is identifying the welfare needs of people and animals in our rural communities and providing information and context to the GEOC.

“The RAG can help most by providing information on the impacts of the event on farmers, growers, and others who live rurally so they can prepare,” Jenny explains.

“Depending on the time of year, a storm may have limited impact, or it may be quite devastating if it causes damage to crops before harvest or hits farms during lambing or calving.”

The local RAG has representatives from many of the rural communities in Nelson and Tasman, including farmers, growers, and foresters.

During an adverse event, the RAG network is able to provide a quick and reliable picture of the needs of our rural communities.

This information then feeds into the GEOC to help prioritise response actions.

In addition to working closely with Nelson Tasman Emergency Management (NTEM), the RAG is supported by MPI and the Top of the South Rural Support Trust.

“This allows for a strong connection between recovery activities and access to support, to help communities recover following significant events,” Jenny says.

Richard Kempthorne is chair of the Rural Advisory Group (RAG) and chair of the Top of the South Rural Support Trust (TOSRST).

“We find that the RAG is a simple and very effective way of identifying where pressure spots exist. With our connections through the Top of the South Rural Support Trust, and the wider multi-agency presence at the Group Emergency Operation Centre, needs can usually be met in a timely manner,” Richard says.

For enquiries email kempthorne.randj@outlook.com