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Be prepared

Work out what you need to do to get prepared at home, work, at school and in your community.

Emergencies can happen anytime, anywhere.  You can take steps to be prepared.

Talking about what you will do in the event of an emergency is one of the easiest things you can do to prepare.

Make a Plan

The plan should be made with all members in your household and you should let family and close friends know about your plan so they know where and how to contact you if you need to leave your home.

When making your plan, think about what you would do if:

  • You were stuck at home for three days or more
  • You couldn't get home
  • You had to evacuate your home
  • You had no power
  • You had no water
  • You had no phone (or internet)

Make sure you also think about people that may have special requirements, and your pets.

Stay Informed

During an emergency, you can get updates from:

This website or our online news channel Newsline(external link).

Local Radio Stations:

  • RNZ National Radio - 101.7 FM or 675 AM
  • The Hits - 97.7 FM or 96.5 FM
  • Newstalk ZB - 100.1 FM or 1098 AM
  • More FM - 92.1 FM, 94.9 FM or 99.1 FM
  • Magic - 99.3 FM or 738 AM
  • The Breeze - 94.5 FM
  • Plains FM - 96.9 FM

Visit GetReady(external link) for more information to start making your plan.

If an emergency happens while you are at work, you will need to think about how you will get home and reach your loved ones. If you own or run a business, think about how to look after your staff, and how you will keep your business running.

Find out more about being prepared at work(external link).

Christchurch City Council provides an education programme called Stan's Got a Plan to supplement the delivery of CDEM education in the classroom.

For school leaders

It's important for early childhood education services and schools to have a plan and be prepared for an emergency event. The Ministry of Education provides lots of useful resources(external link) to get you started.

Stan's Got a Plan programme

Stan the dogThe 'Stan’s Got a Plan' programme can be used to launch or summarise a classroom disaster studies module.

The programme is:

  • Linked to the New Zealand Curriculum, including the 'What’s the Plan Stan?' resource produced by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA)
  • Supportive of the inquiry process
  • Guided by experienced educators
  • Free

Focus your ‘Stan’s Got a Plan’ experience by choosing from earthquakes, flooding, pandemic, tsunami or storms.

Programmes are offered for years 1 to 3, years 4 to 6 and years 7 to 8. For further information, contact us on 03 941 8999 or email LTA@ccc.govt.nz.

Book a Stan's Got a Plan school learning programme

Book

Talk with your community about how you could respond and help each other during an emergency.

  • Get to know your neighbours
  • Share your emergency contact details with your neighbours so they know how to contact you in an emergency
  • Ask your neighbours about their household plan and tell them about yours
  • Get involved with your local community groups
  • Discuss with your community group what you could do to support your community during an emergency and consider making a plan.

Things your community group could consider include:

  • A description of your community
  • Identifying the hazards faced by your community
  • A description of what your community can do together to help each other during an emergency. Consider what the strengths are in your community
  • Identifying where the community will meet in an emergency, and how to evacuate, if necessary. Find out:
    • What community groups exist in your area?
    • How do people connect and communicate?
    • Where do people like to meet?

If your community group would like assistance with planning for an emergency, email us at civildefence@ccc.govt.nz