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THURSDAY NOVEMBER 21, 2024

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NOVEMBER 21, 2024

Getting marae ready By Roy Pilott

King Country marae are being made “emergency ready” on twin fronts. The Lines Company (TLC) has worked alongside Te Nehenehenui to fund six Generation Insertion Points while Civil Defence has held meetings to establish community plans. A Generation Insertion Point or GIP is a socket unit that a generator can plug into when power is cut. The latest was installed at Ōtorohanga’s Taarewaanga marae this week. Five of the $5000 units have been installed at marae and cultural centres on the TLC network. Neighbouring company Waipā Networks co-funded a sixth which is on their electricity network, but within the rohe of Te Nehenehenui.

It is planned to install a further six units. “In the wake of recent cyclones and other extreme weather events, our people told us they see marae and pā as places of refuge,” said Kristen Pari, Te Nehenehenui Project Manager. “Equipping these community hubs with the necessary infrastructure to support our people during times of need was key to building resilience and highlighted that we can’t work in silos; we must work together.” TLC chief Mike Fox said the partnership enabled twice as many GIPs to be installed than had the company worked alone. “Building resilience during natural disasters is an obvious community benefit, and building resilience together doubles that

The latest generation insertion point was installed this week at Te Taarewaanga marae in Ōtorohanga.

community benefit.” Pinzy Henry of Tārewanga Marae said a number of appliances were turned on during the test and everything worked very smoothly. “It is reassuring to know

that we can now cater for our wider community from the marae should we need to set up a civil defence hub.” Meanwhile, Community Connection barbecues in Puahue, Pukeatua,

Civil Defence was at the recent Maniapoto Games.

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Wharepapa, Benneydale, Piopio and Arohena from September 23 to October 4 helped promote Shake Out 2024 and discuss household plans. The annual ShakeOut reminds people of the right actions to take during an earthquake - drop, cover and hold David Simes, Emergency Management Operations Manager – Waitomo, Waipā, Ōtorohanga – said staff also attended a community meeting at the Honikiwi community hall and are working with the group to put together a Community Plan. They were also at the Maniapoto Games over Labour Weekend along with the Customer Experience Teams from Ōtorohanga and

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Waitomo. “The main focus was Shake Out 2024 and the discussions around what to do in an emergency,” Simes said in a council report. Continued progress has been made with the marae preparedness project via incident management courses in Te Kūiti and Taumarunui. Initial draft preparedness plans had been developed with Waipapa, Mangatoatoa, Mangapeehi, Te Kūiti, Taarewaanga, Maniaroa, Pohara and Maungatautari marae along with the Maniapoto Community Centre in Te Anga, he said. Work has also been completed at Te Kooraha Marae in Tahāroa in preparation for any need to set up the marae during an emergency.

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