Source: Radio New Zealand
Wairoa District mayor Craig Little. Nick Monro
Declaring a state of emergency should be the last tool used in the toolbox – not the first.
Those are the words of Wairoa District mayor Craig Little after he chose not to join Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, Napier, Hastings, and Central Hawke’s Bay councils in declaring a local state of emergency during Cyclone Vaianu.
Little later told local Democracy Reporting: “We’re becoming woke as a country when it comes to states of emergency.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon hit back at Little’s comment – saying he is happy to be labelled woke if it means New Zealanders are not losing their lives.
Speaking to Morning Report, Little said Wairoa has been through disasters before and suffered greatly in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle.
For this event, calling a state of emergency before it even hit simply wasn’t necessary, he said.
Little said his district was well prepared for the weather event and forecasts were being watched closely.
The cyclone was downgraded as it approached New Zealand and was considered a “low rain event”.
From the intel he had, “we didn’t require it”.
Little said calling a state of emergency causes panic amongst people – “there’s no doubt about it”.
But he said he was confident Wairoa would be safe – and if it was necessary, he would have called a state of emergency when it was needed.
The decision not to declare was made by not just himself, but agreed upon by elected members of the council.
Little said residents were well aware of what was going on and a number of media releases and social media posts were shared.
Hindsight was a wonderful thing, Little said, and a state of emergency had not been needed.
“I believe it’s the last tool in the toolbox to use – not the first.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
