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Police have grave concerns for about 10 people still missing in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle.
They’re among 4928 people who haven’t been heard from as crews work to urgently restore cellphone coverage and internet connections in flood-ravaged Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti.
Police Deputy Commissioner Glenn Dunbier gave the update in a briefing in the Beehive theatrette in Wellington on Saturday. He said there was a “small number” of missing people whom police had “heightened” concerns about. He guessed about half of the nearly 5000 reported as uncontactable were in the East Cape area. The official death toll stands at nine.
“We triage the reports of people that are missing and clearly those that we have heightened concerns for will come to the top. That is a small number, and it fluctuates day to day,” he said.
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ROBERT KITCHIN/Stuff
Roger Ball, Acting Director Emergency Management, NEMA, Deputy Commissioner Glenn Dunbier, NZ Police, Paul Turner, National Manager Response Capability, Fire and Emergency NZ hold a briefing on the Cyclone Gabrielle aftermath.
There had been many rumours of further dead bodies, but there was nothing the police weren’t telling the public, he added.
Roger Ball, acting director for the National Emergency Managment Agency, said getting cellphone coverage back in affected areas was the key focus. BP would be delivering fuel by the end of Saturday, he said.
About 90% of cell phone towers were operating again in Hawke’s Bay, 80% in Auckland, and 30% in Gisborne – however this would greatly improve when fibre was restored to the area, expected by the end of the weekend, Ball said.
Some power came back on a Napier overnight, and about 24% of households in Napier now have electricity. “Urgent work continues to bring more online as quickly as possible.”
John Cowpland / alphapix
Unison crews work on the line that will get power back to Napier on Saturday.
The Gisborne water plant kicked back in before 7am on Saturday after a replacement unit was delivered late yesterday on a C130 Hercules. The Defence Force was treating the water, he said.
Civil Defence staff had faced aggression and threats while delivering and restocking essential supplies.
“Please, I do understand the stress that many of you will be going through, but it’s absolutely essential that the people delivering supplies are able to do their job without anybody hassling them,” he said.
Ball also said now wasn’t the right time to question whether the response was adequate in the Esk Valley, and whether people should have been told to evacuate the area, which a history of devastating flash flooding.
“There will be an opportunity to review and reflect and look at what lessons should be learned, and I know that the CDM (Civil Defence Management) Group will want to do that. But I think we need to give them the space at the moment to deal with what is a very urgent situation in front of them and just meet the needs of the community just at this time.”
Dunbier also warned police would take a “hard line” on anyone found to be looting or burgling in the aftermath of the floods.
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