Thursday, October 22, 2009
Minister of Civil Defence John Carter today visited the Hutt Valley Emergency Management Office to learn more about how New Zealand local authorities can be better prepared for managing emergencies.
The Hutt Valley Emergency Management Office carries out the emergency management, civil defence and rural fire responsibilities for both the Hutt City and Upper Hutt City councils.
The Minister was given a demonstration of Readynet, an emergency preparedness system, by Hutt Valley Emergency Manager, Paul Nickalls.
“Hutt Valley is an early adopter of Readynet, the web based information system and we have already used it on a number of occasions to alert people of impending emergencies,” says Nickalls.
Nickalls highlighted to the Minister several occasions where Readynet was used in situations to provide accurate communications with specific groups.
“In such situations, Readynet is the perfect early warning method for us to have in our emergency management tool box,” says Nickalls.
The Minister was impressed with Hutt Valley’s wealth of information about residential, retail and business centres which was immediately available to emergency services.
Hutt City Mayor David Ogden was supportive of Readynet’s capabilities for providing Hutt Valley with an emergency management tool which can be used on an on-going basis for various issues effecting local residents.
“It’s great to know that the residents of Hutt Valley are well served by our preparedness system that can potentially reduce unnecessary trauma and save lives,” he said.