Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 62
new-zealand-labour-party
Tue Jun 21 2011 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 62
Tuesday, 21 June 2011, 12:12 pm
Press Release: New Zealand Labour Party
Christchurch
LABOUR MPs
21 June 2011 MEDIA STATEMENT
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 62
The Labour Party’s Christchurch electorate MPs, Clayton Cosgrove (Waimakariri), Ruth Dyson (Port Hills), Lianne Dalziel (Christchurch East) and Brendon Burns (Christchurch Central) have started a regular bulletin to keep people in their electorates and media informed about what is happening at grass roots level.
CLAYTON COSGROVE: Speculation is now widespread that the Government will make its land announcements this week. We’ve recommended to Gerry Brownlee that he shows a high degree of sensitivity. It seems that he will send letters to everyone, followed by a media conference on Thursday, followed by public meetings. These meetings need to be of small clusters to enable detailed information to be given, with the opportunity for a great deal of interaction, as happened in Waimakariri when the District Council engaged with local people. These meetings must be followed up by community coordinators who visit residents who are in distress, or who otherwise need one to one contact. It’s not a one size fits all situation. People also need to be presented with a range of options --- they can’t be offered something on a take it or leave it basis. Mr Brownlee has indicated decisions will be made on a street by street basis, while John Key talks of suburb by suburb. This is the sort of inconsistency of information that is causing great distress. Mr Brownlee’s decision to call a halt to the Waimakariri rebuild just eight days before it was due to start is already causing frustration. Contractors have been put on hold and so has the recovery effort. No one knows why. People are champing at the bit to get going but are getting no information from Mr Brownlee. The Waimakariri council and community has been very well organised, and I wouldn’t like to see the people here disadvantaged because Mr Brownlee can’t get his act together.
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RUTH DYSON: The shortest day will be welcomed here – roll on longer days and better weather! It is certainly going to be a long hard winter ahead. The boil water notice has been lifted, and I note the council says that water has been restored everywhere except for a small part of Scarborough. I wish that was so! Residents in Clifton – and there are still quite a few – have no road vehicle access and no water. I have been asking the council every day since the quakes last Monday to get bottled water to the two hubs in Sumner and Redcliffs, as both have offered to take bottled water up to Clifton. Access is really only safe with a four wheel drive or walking, and the walking access has become very tricky over the last few days because the rain has made the track up very slippery. The hubs did this bottled water delivery on the first two days, with bottled water donated by Tom Thumb Logistics, but they were not able to continue their donations, having hit $40,000 worth of water. Nothing from the Council! There is also no timetable for the road re-opening, which is causing a high level of anxiety. There was a fire in a Clifton house on Friday and the Sumner Fire Brigade had a 10 minute delay caused by having to negotiate access through the cordon. I have been told that this particular issue has now been addressed by the Fire Brigade, but none of the other support issues for Clifton residents have been sorted. Redcliffs School is moving on to the Sumner School site in the short term, starting this Thursday, so the hub has moved out to make way for the children. The volunteers at the hub have done a fantastic job providing support and advice to locals. I am also seeking from the council a timetable for decisions about demolishing or repairing (and/or replacing) the damaged libraries. I went to the Heathcote Library AGM yesterday, and also present were representatives from St Martins, Redcliffs and Opawa – all with damaged buildings. What they most need is a timeframe, so they can plan alternative, temporary accommodation. Yani Johansen and I met last evening with residents in Woolston who have flooded properties. The main issue is that the cause of the flooding is not obvious – it could be broken water pipes, new springs emerging or a raised water table because of the quakes. It is really important the council and EQC help residents get experts in to establish the cause or causes, so they can be addressed comprehensively, rather than house by house, which is expensive and inefficient and can cause problems to other residents. One problem fixed in isolation might compound another down the street. The hot news is the possible release of the land reports on Thursday. The Government has not understood the message we have been giving --- NOT to rush into announcements that might be incorrect, but to tell people what they knew as that information became available. That gives people with a feeling of empowerment and hope. The government could have done this for many more people over the last few months.
LIANNE DALZIEL: The government’s refusal to confirm when it will release information it has worked all weekend to package together is adding to anxiety in the eastern suburbs. I wrote to the Minister on 27th April and said: “First I would like you to consider making earlier decisions for Bexley & Horseshoe Lake than for the other suburbs. This is because these are the areas where the land has dropped the most and given the flood risks, it must be a relatively clear-cut decision. I am sure that you would prefer to address all the damaged suburbs at the same time, including those around the River Avon and along the Port Hills, with the valleys below. But the strain is taking its toll on these two communities given how long it has been for both of them. And to tell you the truth, I don’t think the majority will buy the perimeter treatment option now. You know and I know that the perimeter treatment was designed to prevent lateral spread, but the failure of communication has led many to believe that it was designed to prevent liquefaction. People who have experienced the silt breaking through their floors and entering their houses are unlikely to feel safe again. Second I would like to discuss with you a proposal for an improved way of communicating the information contained in the land report to the affected communities … people (are) very clear that they didn’t want to read the information for the first time in the newspaper. It will be important that meetings are held suburb by affected suburb (ideally simultaneously) with the experts … so the information … can be explained carefully and questions can be asked and answered. The need to handle the release of information sensitively and respectfully will be paramount in terms of how the community copes with the news – which will be good or bad depending on what in his or her heart of hearts each individual wants. I know this because I am one of them. It is vital that this information is shared with the community before the government makes its decision. Understanding the stages of grief should help put this request into perspective. People are getting angry. Many of the people I represent don’t trust the system anymore. I have done everything I can to keep people informed as I believe that helps – I have told them I trust the engineers and will wait until the report is available before forming opinions about what is and isn’t possible. I am worried though because we are heading into winter and people’s despondency may turn to despair - the potential consequences are enormous.” It is now ‘blindingly obvious’ National will make an announcement on Thursday without any attempt at this community engagement – that is politicising the disaster.
BRENDON BURNS: About twice a week I ride my bike ride through Avonside, Richmond and other parts of my electorate that have felt the triple whammy of the September, February and June quakes. In Avonside today I spoke to several people. The power was temporarily off at the Wilding Park hot showers but staff were working to restore it. The recuperative powers of hot water are hugely appreciated by local residents. An older woman in Torlesse St had relocated there from Kaiapoi after the September quake. She wanted to know what was happening with the land. A younger woman living in beleaguered Retreat Rd just wanted some answers about her property. I am as frustrated as my constituents. From September on there has been no coherent communications strategy, certainly not one with people at its core. At last night’s IConIC meeting of building owners and heritage advocates, the first thing we did was confirm our support for a Charter of Community Engagement Principles for the Regeneration of Canterbury. A broad alliance of Canterbury organisations are signing up to this internationally-derived charter which has as its first value that: “Public participation is based on the belief that those who are affected by a decision have a right to be involved in the decision-making process”. It looks like the dribble of land information is about to become a flood. Weeks of encouraging talk about Cantabrians having their say about the rebuilding have been discarded as the Government proceeds with the usual top-down process of decision-making and release. It is therefore cheering to see some people continuing to step up and do their best. Phillipstown School is a decile one school in one of the poorest parts of my electorate. It was one of those hardest hit by the quakes, but since principal Tony Simpson was on National Radio recently discussing poverty in eastern parts of Christchurch, he has sparked a “humbling” response. A Central Otago resident, Naomi Keenan, coordinated a truckload of donated food and clothes totalling 194 banana boxes. The Variety Club has donated $2500 which Tony has used to buy dozens of mink blankets which now line his office ready for distribution. Philanthropist Sir David Levene has made another considerable donation to the school and the Auckland-based Tsu Chi foundation, representing Korean Buddhists, is working to send items like hot water bottles and clothes racks. Soroptimists International, via a Lower Hutt member, is knitting jerseys. So much has been donated, Phillipstown School is donating goods to others in need across eastern Christchurch. This is a fantastic initiative and response. It lifts our spirits to see such generosity pouring in from all parts of New Zealand and further abroad and to know that people recognise the challenges we face at the moment.
ENDS
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