Gita group expands help
Twelve weeks after ex-Tropical Cyclone Gita hammered pockets of Tasman district, one group of volunteers is expanding its level of support to people affected.
Beyond the Bridge Riwaka coordinator Melissa Girvin said the group now offered a wide range of support, including firewood for winter, meal, petrol and supermarket vouchers, and help with filling out insurance claim forms.
‘‘At the moment, we’re organising weekends away, especially for people who aren’t in their homes,’’ she said. ‘‘We’ve supplied some emergency fencing for a family that lost theirs, to keep the children [safely] on the property.’’
A counselling service was also in the pipeline to help individuals and groups, including children.
Straight after the storm hit on February 20, the people behind Beyond the Bridge Riwaka started delivering food parcels and offering to help residents clean up their silt- and debris-affected properties.
Initially, a lot of the food was readyto-eat staples such as filled rolls for workers. Girvin and her team then started making evening meals ‘‘to show them that they were still cared for’’.
Meanwhile, fellow community stalwart Claire Hutt was co-ordinating cleanup efforts outside the Beyond the Bridge banner. The pair started to work together.
‘‘It snowballed from there, really, and it’s grown quite large, to the point that we’ve now formed a committee,’’ Girvin said.
As well as Hutt and Girvin, the other members are Debbie Bowdler, Linda Glew and John Fisher.
While the demand for food parcels may have diminished, some people still needed support, Girvin said.
‘‘While people are there still struggling, we’ll still be there supporting them.’’
Support for Beyond the Bridge came from many organisations, including Network Tasman and Lions and Rotary clubs, she said. There had also been fundraising concerts and donations from individual members of the community.
Stress might become heightened several months after a disaster, when the agencies had finished their work, Girvin said.
‘‘We’re aware of that, and I message people regularly, just checking in to see how things are going.’’
‘‘The thing with us Kiwis is we’re so humble, we think we’ll be OK and we don’t need to ask for help. But if someone puts that [help] out there, it makes it easier to say, ‘Actually, that would be really good’.’’
Anyone who needs help or knows of a neighbour who might need support is urged to get in touch via the Beyond the Bridge Riwaka Facebook page or by emailing beyondthebridgegroup@ gmail.com. Girvin can also be contacted on 027 209 9309.