Minister of Civil Defence Chris Tremain has praised the efforts of the Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management for its successful first ever nationwide ShakeOut earthquake drill.
“This morning at 9.26am over 1.3 million New Zealanders practised the drill – Drop, Cover and Hold. That is an outstanding effort…….. and I’d like to thank the citizens, schools, government organisations and businesses throughout the country who took the opportunity to get on board,” says Mr Tremain.
This morning I took part in the drill with a group of children from Reignier School in Napier who were visiting Parliament. I was really impressed that they knew exactly what to do and the importance of having an emergency plan to get through. We know from the Canterbury earthquakes that those who were well prepared were able to cope better. “I’d like to congratulate the citizens of this country for today demonstrating how to protect themselves and understanding the importance of being prepared when a major earthquake happens.”
