To mark Te Wiki o te Reo Māori Fire and Emergency New Zealand has today launched a reo Māori version of its Escape My House website.

"The website is a demonstration of our commitment to working with Māori to create a safer environment not just for Māori, but for all New Zealanders," Fire and Emergency Chief Executive Rhys Jones says.

"It also demonstrates our commitment to the promotion of reo Māori. Te reo Māori is a taonga for all New Zealanders so we want to play our part in normalising the use of te reo."

A reo Māori version of the television commercial promoting the Escape My House website is also being broadcast during Te Wiki o te Reo Māori.

The commercial encourages people to visit the website to create an escape plan from their house in the event of a fire. The site guides people through five simple steps to ensure they and their families can survive a house fire.

Since the website was launched in June more than 52,000 people have visited the site and more than 12,000 people have completed escape plans.

Mr Jones says it is a promising beginnning, but Fire and Emergency wants all families to have a plan for getting out of their homes in the event of a fire and for where they will gather.

"Next to having working smoking alarms, having an escape plan is the most important thing you can do to keep yourself and your family safe.

"The people who survive life-threatening emergencies are not braver or stronger or smarter than others; they are the people who have worked out in advance what they will do in the event of the unexpected."

The Escape My House website can be viewed here https://www.escapemyhouse.co.nz/intro

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