Source: Radio New Zealand
13 people died in Hawke’s Bay in relation to Cyclone Gabrielle on 14 February 2023. Supplied
The coroner in charge of the Cyclone Gabrielle Inquiry has given the public a telling off for making unkind comments online about a witness, saying no individual person is to blame for those who died in the tragic weather event.
The coroner began day 14 of the Hawke’s Bay phase of the inquiry by telling the court she was aware of “unkind” comments being made online about a witness.
Woolley said it’s very easy to judge the actions of other people with the benefit of hindsight and from behind the “shield of a keyboard”.
“I would challenge any person thinking about making negative comments about the evidence of witnesses online, to think about how well you might perform under similar scrutiny.
“I doubt many people would be able to act perfectly or to make all the right decisions in circumstances such as what unfolded in Cyclone Gabrielle,” the coroner said.
Day 14 of the Hawke’s Bay phase of the Cyclone Gabrielle Inquiry began with the coroner defending a witness. RNZ / Tess Brunton
Woolley said a Coroner’s Inquest relies on people coming to court and giving evidence, which “may inherently involve admissions about things they could have done differently or better”.
She also noted that many of the people working in Civil Defence and emergency services were volunteers, and the system relied on them taking these roles on as well as their “business as usual” jobs.
“Without people doing that work, given we are in a country facing a great deal of natural hazards, we would all be at risk of having no one come to assist us in times of need,” Woolley said.
She emphasised the importance and function of a Coronial Inquiry.
“The purpose of this process is to make positive change for future, not to blame individuals,” Woolley said.
‘I’m so sorry’
Robert Johnson, who was the Emergency Management Advisor for Communications and Public Information (PIM) during Cyclone Gabrielle, made an emotional apology to victims’ families on Thursday morning.
“The families and whanau who tragically lost their lives in the cyclone, to you I extend my heartfelt aroha and condolences.
“It is with that deep respect that I give my evidence today.”
Robert Johnson. RNZ/Alexa Cook
His voice choked with emotion as he told the court about how more than two years on from the deadly Cyclone Gabrielle, he still thought about it every day.
“It is often one of the last things on my mind at night as I got to sleep. My colleagues and I tried our very best to plan for and respond to the cyclone and keep our community safe.
“I am so sorry that our efforts could not prevent the loss of your precious loved ones,” he said.
As Johnson took a moment to gather himself, the coroner then made the unusual move of responding to his apology, telling him “no one died because of one person in this event”.
“I’m sure the families are appreciative of your comments, but I want to emphasise that I don’t think any one person should bear the feelings that they themselves are responsible for any deaths in this situation,” Woolley said.
‘I absolutely would approach things differently’
Flood damage in the Esk Valley in Hawke’s Bay. RNZ / Tess Brunton
Earlier in the week, the court heard about how Civil Defence Group Emergency Coordination Centre (GECC) was running with “skeleton staff” on the night of 13 February, when rivers burst their banks and flooded hundreds of homes.
The acting group controller for Civil Defence in Hawke’s Bay, Edaan Lennan, had explained the challenges of finding enough staff for overnight shifts, and the decision to strategically bring people back early on February 14th.
At 10pm on February 13, Robert Johnson left the HBCDEM Group office leaving Lennan to oversee communications with the public.
“I had full confidence in Edaan’s ability using the tools and channels, and what we anticipated overnight was perhaps some minor incidences at a local level that Edaan could then share on our channel.
“But in hindsight, I would not be comfortable leaving no PIM manager in place,” he said.
He became emotional as he described how hard it was to leave the office the night of February 13.
“I really struggled with leaving office that night. I had a partner and 2 year old child at home.”
He said leaving was not something he would normally do, as he’d usually “see it through”.
In his evidence, Johnson also reflected on the wording of the Facebook posts used to inform the public. A post from 8:33pm on February 13th included messaging for residents that said:
“At the moment there is no need for residents to evacuate – those who should move have already been contacted – however, if you feel concerned, please don’t hesitate to voluntarily self-evacuate to whānau and friends.
“If evacuation is required overnight, teams will be deployed to advise residents. And if you are told to evacuate, please follow the evacuation advice you are given at the time.”
Flood victims have since expressed their frustration and anger over the wording of these posts, saying it gave them a false sense of security that they could go to sleep that night and would be alerted if an evacuation was needed.
An Emergency Mobile Alert was not issued for Esk Valley until 5:19am on 14 February, by which time two people had already drowned and many more residents were clutching onto their rooftops as the floodwaters rose.
The coroner’s lawyer Matthew Mortimer-Wang asked Johnson about his Facebook posts, querying whether it was appropriate to tell residents that they’d be advised if an evacuation was needed.
“Have the events of Cyclone Gabrielle changed your sensitivity or margin of appreciation built into when we might, or might not, be able to follow though,” Mortimer-Wang asked.
“The events of Cyclone Gabrielle have changed my life. I absolutely would approach things differently,” Johnson said.
Johnson’s previous communication experience included working as a Press Secretary in Parliament for Minister Kelvin Davis, who was the Deputy Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party at the time. Since moving to Hawke’s Bay in 2021, he’d been deployed as a PIM for West Coast flooding in 2021 and the Nelson Tasman flooding in 2022.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
