Staying prepared for natural disasters

Vaka Tautua CEO Moananu Anna Redican-Kolose with members of our Kāinga Tonga - Tongan Disability Network

After Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland floods, many city councils have stepped up programmes to help communities prepare for and respond to natural disasters.

In 2025, Vaka Tautua partnered with Auckland Emergency Management to deliver an Emergency Readiness and Response programme to our Fiji, Tongan, and Sāmoan Disability Network Groups.

Senior Community Advisor Andrew Peteru, who has been delivering the programme at Vaka Tautua, says raising awareness in community groups is crucial.

“A lot of our people (Pacific people) don’t know the process of weather watches, weather warnings and where to get that information from.

“Then once they have that information, what to do, who to call and where to go,” he says.

The programme covers practical steps, such as being home-ready.

Disability groups were advised to keep a survival kit and grab bag with at least three days of clean water and canned food.

They were also reminded to know their neighbours in case they need support during an emergency.

Peteru highlights a key strength of Pacific community groups: many come from the islands and have experienced extreme weather before.

“They know what it’s like to go through a disaster such as a cyclone or a flooding.

“So when they do come (community groups) all that readiness stuff and response stuff is kind of already implanted. So when we talk about it and cover the areas they catch on very quickly,” he says.

Living in the Pacific Islands, many people learn from a young age to read the weather and predict storms.

But arriving in New Zealand, a new environment can make people more reliant on platforms such as social media or radio.

Peteru says this line of work is important because it reaches people who may not be using or listening to these platforms.

“The importance is that they are aware, they are ready and that they are not caught off guard,” he says.

Media: For any interview requests about this story please contact Aaron Ryan - aaron.ryan@vakatautua.co.nz / 0221006951