Tairāwhiti Multicultural Council played an important role in the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle, linking the community to essential services.
With no power, WiFi or digital communications, council members went door-knocking in the immediate hours and days after Cyclone Gabrielle struck. They focused on finding displaced people safe and dry accommodation, making sure people had food and supporting people’s mental wellbeing.
President Arish Naresh and Ethnic Community Connector Meredith Stewart say many migrants were used to “soldiering on” during and after significant weather events.
“Instead of reaching out it was a case of reaching in,” Ms Stewart says.
“Even then they say initially ‘everything is fine’.”
The team had to act fast and develop plans in matters of minutes or hours.
“We had to move fast because if we didn’t we could potentially lose them (affected people) or their mental wellbeing would be in a higher level of stress.”
Within days they had set up a community hub with services such as Immigration, Ministry for Social Development and Inland Revenue. It was the only place in town which had WiFi. The hub was a place where the community could connect with Government agencies and receive help from the Tairāwhiti Multicultural Council with language support and funding applications.
The Council has worked hard over the past year to help prepare the community in the event of future weather emergencies. They developed 350 emergency grab bags and have been providing these to community members. They have held workshops on how to design an emergency plan, with more planned for 2024.
They also created a video script on how to plan for an emergency, got it translated and involved community members to deliver it in their own language. In total, 23 videos have been published so far. Ms Stewart also shared insights about the Council’s work when she was a panellist on the Ministry for Ethnic Communities Rise Up Panel at its Auckland Ethnic Advantage Conference.
The Council is doing its best to support people with community initiatives which support wellbeing. These include events such as the International Food Festival, Colour Run and an upcoming ‘Diversity Train’.
“It brings the community together, allows them to really engage and connect, and that’s one way to provide psychosocial support,” Mr Naresh says.
Tairāwhiti Multicultural Council has recently been invited by Gisborne District Council to be involved in discussions on its Three Year Plan Consultation, and has been nominated for its Superheroes awards for people who stood out and helped during the emergency.
Find out more about Tairāwhiti Multicultural Council on its Facebook page.