FAQs

The community is at the heart of civil defence emergency management, so it is important we hear from the community about how we all work together before, during and after a disaster.

Your feedback will help guide our Group Plan objectives and actions over the next five years.

We’ll provide a summary report of the feedback received once the community engagement period closes. This will be reported to the Civil Defence Emergency Management Committee. Keep an eye on this webpage for updates.

The draft Group Plan sets out the strategic direction for our work on Auckland’s Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM) system. It outlines the CDEM mission and objectives for Tāmaki Makaurau, how we will achieve them and how we will measure our performance. The plan covers a 5-year period.

Auckland Council were legally required to establish a CDEM Group. Auckland's CDEM Group is the Civil Defence Emergency Management Committee.

Auckland Emergency Management is the Auckland CDEM Group Emergency Management Office (GEMO) responsible for day-to-day planning, project work and the delivering of operational arrangements on behalf of the Auckland CDEM Group. In short, they support the Auckland CDEM Group to achieve their priorities by being the ‘doers’.  

We help build a safe and resilient Tāmaki Makaurau by empowering communities before, during and after emergencies. The Auckland CDEM Group’s role is to provide a coordinated and integrated approach to the way hazard risks are managed in the Auckland region, across the four 'R's of emergency management.

Emergency Management is the preparation before an emergency, the coordination during an emergency and the management of the medium- and long-term impacts after an emergency. This is based on the 4 R’s framework:

• reduction: reducing the impact of hazards on our whānau, businesses and community
• readiness: having the skills, knowledge, plans, and tools before a disaster happens so we are prepared
• response: taking action to ensure the safety and wellbeing of people and places
• recovery: restoring sustainable wellbeing after an emergency.

Different hazards are led by different agencies. For example, Fire and Emergency New Zealand lead fire related emergencies and the New Zealand Police lead the maintenance of law and order on a daily basis. Nationally, the National Emergency Management Agency leads geological, meteorological and infrastructure failure hazards. In Tāmaki Makaurau, this is led by the Auckland CDEM Group, however, while there may be one lead, most events involve numerous agencies working together to manage the emergency and keep people safe.

The Auckland Group Plan helps the public to understand:

• who the Auckland CDEM Group is
• what the Auckland CDEM Group’s responsibilities are
• the hazards and risks Tāmaki Makaurau faces
• why Tāmaki Makaurau faces these risks; and
• what the Auckland CDEM Group plans to do about them.

This document is intended to provide the strategic goals, vision and actions of the Auckland CDEM Group, in relation to the hazards and risks that Tāmaki Makaurau may face. It sets out the key things we need to focus on to improve the Emergency Management system over the next 5 years. Some of the actions include developing detailed plans for different types of hazards and events. The Group Plan is not intended to be a tactical response plan. 

We understand that when a disaster strikes, it is often community members who are the first to respond and offer assistance. The agencies that respond to the emergency, such as Fire and Emergency New Zealand, Police, Ambulance, and Auckland Emergency Management (on behalf of the Auckland CDEM Group) are better able to prioritise their disaster response work if communities also act for themselves and others. We need to work together for the safety and wellbeing of all.

No one knows your community better than you and the people in it. Auckland Emergency Management encourages all communities to come together and talk about how to get ready and plan what you will do during an emergency. The Auckland Emergency Management website contains reslience planning resources here.

The Auckland Emergency Management website has an interactive map which allows you to determine whether you live or work in an area impacted by hazards. The hazard viewer can be found here.