Planning for emergencies
The Athenree community has updated its community response plan — a guide to helping residents get through the immediate aftermath of an emergency that could isolate it from help.
The Athenree Community Response Plan, initially prepared in 2015, has been updated by the community response team.
The plan outlines how the community would come together in an emergency, how people would help each other, pull resources together and share information.
Planning is based on supporting the community for the first few days after an emergency.
The review of the Athenree plan is part of a district-wide programme by Western Bay of Plenty District Council and Emergency Management Bay of Plenty to bring all community response strategies up to date and recruit people into community response teams.
Council says the Athenree area is particularly vulnerable in the event of a natural disaster due to a single road providing access in and out of the community, with several river bridges and the chance of disruption to road access via the state highway between Katikati and Waihi Beach.
Response Plan coordinator Bronwyn Cooper says the updated plan is not greatly changed from the original, apart from new contact details for the main responders in an emergency and clarification of the evacuation centres.
The two emergency evacuation points in Athenree are:
Rapley’s Packhouse, 169 Athenree Rd.
Athenree Homestead and former Athenree railway station.
The plan covers the Athenree peninsula and Athenree Gorge area, bounded by Bridgeman Lane to the south, and Emerton Road and Athenree Gorge to the north.
Some of the main events that could cause an emergency and isolate the Athenree area: Earthquake. Tsunami.
Volcanic eruption. Severe weather event. Flooding.
Any of these events could also bring loss of water supply, electrical supply and telephone contact, including cell phones.
The updated plan will be available on Western Bay of Plenty District Council website www.westernbay.govt.nz.
For more information contact: Bronwyn Cooper, email bronnie8@xtra.co.nz