Leithfield's plan of action

Last week Hurunui District Council’s (HDC) Emergency Management Officer Allan Grigg met with a group of Leithfield Village residents to continue to develop their Community Response Plan; a plan of action should a natural disaster occur.

In 2020, Environment Canterbury reviewed tsunami evacuation zones across the Canterbury region, which resulted in the revision of some evacuation zones in Hurunui district.

Earlier this year, Allan attended a community meeting in Leithfield Village to discuss the revised tsunami evacuation zones.

These discussions triggered an appreciation for the need of an overall community response plan in the area, created alongside a working group of community representatives.

“Communities fare much better before, during, and after emergency events if they are connected and have a plan.”

The working group intends to have a draft of this plan out to Leithfield Village residents by the end of August for consultation before it is formally adopted by the community.

“These plans are much more effective when developed with a community, rather than done for a community.”

In recent years, these plans have already been established for Waiau, Cheviot, Amberley Beach and Hanmer.

“Our goal is to continue to develop and review these plans with communities throughout the district,” said Allan.