Cyclone Gabrielle: PM paints bleak picture with ‘big challenges ahead’

The Prime Minister painted a bleak picture of what is to come after Cyclone Gabrielle, warning of more fatalities after he returned from a visit to Gisborne on Thursday.

“Tragically, police confirm that the number of fatalities caused by the cyclone currently stands at five,” Chris Hipkins said.

“There are still people for whom police hold great concerns and we do need to be prepared for the likelihood there will be more fatalities.”

So far five people have been confirmed dead in Cyclone Gabrielle.

Images emerged from Hawke’s Bay of widespread devastation, cars strewn through mud, houses ruined and severe flooding damage across the region.

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Hipkins said damage to roads was one of the most significant issues, and asked people in the area to minimise movements, “so we can concentrate on getting supplies and repair crews in where they are needed”.

“Clearly there are some big challenges ahead,” he said.

Transportation links needed to be reestablished, power needed to be reconnected, a good level of communication was needed “before they’re able to start moving towards recovery”.

“I don’t have time estimates for all of that.”

He said from what he had seen in Gisborne, getting fresh water regularised again would be challenging due to the extensive damage to the pipelines, but alternatives were being looked at.

As of 2.30pm Thursday, there were 3544​ reports of un-contactable people registered with police, with another 450 reported as found.

”This will include multiple reports for the same people,” Hipkins said. “We believe the majority of those considered un-contactable, simply cannot make contact with loved ones, so police are prioritising those who are in isolated areas.”

Support from Australia had been accepted, with agency-to-agency support to NEMA (National Emergency Management Agency), with five impact assessment teams of 25 people arriving in the next 48 hours.

The impact assessment teams would be looking for missing people, whether buildings are habitable and providing assessments.

There were 3187 people staying in evacuation centres and 800 households evacuated in Northland and Auckland.

Assistant Chief of Defence Darryn Webb, also at the Thursday media conference, said more than 700 Defence Force staff had been deployed, with hundreds on standby.

“Our people have been involved in some really challenging situations. We’ve winched people from houses and rescued a sailor from a stricken yacht. Our Unimogs have helped evacuate people through high floodwaters in appalling conditions.

“This has already been one of our largest domestic deployments in recent memory, and we will continue to support those in need for as long as it takes.”

In relation to potential crime in the area, Hipkins said any potential offenders could expect police to crack down, hard.

“Sadly, in a disaster like that there is occasionally some people who use that as the opportunity for opportunistic offending.

“The police have been very clear that they are going to crack down on that hard, so now is not the time for anybody to think they can chance their luck.

“The police are going to be out there visible and active. And anyone who’s breaking the law can expect to face the consequences of that.”

Hipkins said the recovery would have an impact on this year’s budget, as well as longer-term implications for key infrastructure in order to ensure it can cope in the event of future weather events.

Asked when people would be able to contact their loved ones, Hipkins said once telecommunications resumes, it would make the process easier.

Police were going through a process prioritising information, including removing duplicates and narrowing down on those they have serious concerns about.

They would also be proactively following up on people and going door to door.