16 August 2011
Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence and Emergency Management Media Release
New Group Manager for Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence
A new Group Manager for the Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence Emergency Management office has been appointed. Ian Macdonald will
take up this newly created role and will also serve as the primary Group Controller in a regional scale event.
Hawke’s Bay has been working towards strengthening its Civil Defence and Emergency Management Group office over the past
six months, and this appointment is a major step forward.
Ian will start in his new role in 5 September 2011 and will be based at Hawke’s Bay Regional Council for initially,
before transferring to the dedicated emergency management centre located in Hastings which will house the regional civil
defence group office.
Ian has been a manager at Hastings District Council for a number of years in land use planning and more recently, for
strategic and community planning projects. During his time with the Hastings District Council, Ian has been involved in
the management of a number of emergencies. Most recently he spent two weeks as part of the response and recovery
operations related to the heavy rain event that devastated the Hawke’s Bay coast after Easter 2011.
Ian is also active as a member of the NZ Army Reserve (Territorial Force) and holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel being
posted to Army General Staff, Wellington where he is responsible for the selection and career management of army reserve
officers. As well as having a number of command appointments, he has attended and instructed at military staff colleges
in New Zealand and Canada and has experience in training and exercise development. He also deployed to the Middle East
for 12 months where he served with the United Nations in Israel, Syria and South Lebanon.
ENDS