Ruapehu District Council has undertaken a civil defence training exercise designed to test its emergency response systems and personnel. The scenario, centered around a fictional cyclone, simulated the impacts of severe weather, including damaging winds, heavy rainfall, flooding, road closures, and the need for community evacuations.

Emergency Management Officer Andy Chambers emphasised the critical importance of training exercises like this in building the skills, confidence, and readiness of Council staff to respond effectively to real-world emergencies. "With climate change these types of weather events are becoming increasingly common in Ruapehu, not to mention the other threats we face such as earthquakes and active volcanoes in our backyard," he said.

"Civil defence and emergency management is a core responsibility of councils. As the frontline responders in times of crisis, we need to ensure that every staff member is equipped with the knowledge and capability to act swiftly and confidently in the face of disasters.

The fictional cyclone scenario involved known district hazards, such as flooding in flood-prone areas, road closures, evacuations, and the coordination of welfare services for affected communities. Training exercises like this one allow us to stress-test our systems, develop our people, and build resilience within our community.”

Mr Chambers said that training for civil defence response is an ongoing commitment for Ruapehu District Council. "Over the past six months, we’ve had a program of upskilling staff to ensure they are ready for any event. This includes online training through the Civil Defence Integrated Training Framework, which covers all aspects of emergency management and response," he noted.

"The realism of the exercise was further enhanced by the participation of external agencies including St John Ambulance and local radio station Cruise FM, who helped test our public information capabilities," Mr. Chambers said. "I want to thank everyone who participated for making the exercise as realistic as possible. We learned a lot and identified several key areas for improvement."

"Council’s role as a frontline civil defence and emergency management responder is critical to ensuring the safety and well-being of everyone in Ruapehu. No matter how many times you’ve been through an emergency, ongoing training is critically important.

These exercises not only ensure that our systems are tested but that our staff feel capable and confident to meet any challenge that comes our way," concluded Mr. Chambers.

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