Manawatū-Whanganui Emergency Management Group has launched its new website, giving people in the region another trusted source of information before, during and after emergencies.
Horizons Regional Council manager emergency management, Chay Hook says the new website, which has the web address mwcdem.govt.nz, provides a one-stop shop for emergency management information.
“Until now, emergency management information for the region has been housed on Horizons Regional Council’s website. Having a standalone emergency management website is best practice, bringing us in line with other emergency management groups across the motu,” said Mr Hook.
The new website gives enhanced options for displaying information, he said.
“The website will update automatically when MetService issues weather alerts, while people can get information about smaller-scale emergencies via a Regional Alerts section.”
“The homepage also features a situation map, which will update in real time with information such as the MetService alerts, NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi state highway road closures, and tsunami evacuation zones.”
While the website will generally feature preparedness information, including district-by-district information recognising the unique features of each part of the Manawatū-Whanganui Region, there is also the option to flip the website into an ‘emergency response mode’ during large-scale emergencies, says Mr Hook.
“This emergency response mode will strip out the preparedness information and a lot of imagery, instead prioritising the most urgent information about the specific emergency event. This ensures people get the most important information immediately. It also reduces the data load on people’s devices and telecommunications infrastructure.”
“We can then put the website back into its original mode once we are through a response and transitioning into the recovery phase of an emergency.”
The New Zealand company which built the website, Effect, has provided a hosting solution which gives an extremely high level of reliability, says Mr Hook.
“This helps to mitigate the risk of the website going down when people need to access it most.”
The new website is just one method which will be used to communicate information before, during and after emergencies, he said.
“Councils in our region will also continue to use their communications channels to keep their communities informed.”
Horizons Regional Council administers the Manawatū-Whanganui Emergency Management Group. This includes providing staff to ensure the functioning of the group’s office, and staff during emergency events to run the region’s Emergency Coordination Centre (ECC).
Horizons staff also provide expertise and advice during flood events. Horizons is responsible for the construction and maintenance of one of the country’s largest environmental data monitoring networks, and many flood protection assets across the region.
You can learn more about Horizons’ civil defence functions via the Horizons website.
People with feedback about the new website can email help@horizons.govt.nz with the subject ‘MWCDEM website’, or send a direct message to the Civil Defence Manawatū Whanganui Facebook page.
