A supercity woefully unprepared for a superstorm

Described as a system failure, the immediate response to the Auckland floods raises big questions about disaster preparedness in the country's biggest city

Mōrena and welcome to The Bulletin for Thursday, April 13, by Anna Rawhiti-Connell. Presented in partnership with Z Energy.

In today’s edition: Three Waters rebrand to be announced today but also, why are we using the term rebrand?; all 17,000 street lamps in Wellington at risk of failing; news from the Palace; but first, the damning review into the response to the Auckland floods 

Wayne Brown surveys January's flood damage in Auckland (Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty Images)

“It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark”

That’s the quote that opens Mike Bush’s review into the immediate response to the floods in Auckland in late January. It’s usually attributed to idiosyncratic, conservative economist Howard Ruff, who used it to recommend readiness in the event of economic collapse. After being delayed four times, the 106-page report was released yesterday. Stewart Sowman-Lund breaks down the key findings. This morning, noting the review’s criticism of a lack of visible leadership at a time of crisis, Toby Manhire is once again asking where Wayne Brown is. Auckland’s mayor did not front the press conference yesterday for the release of the review he commissioned. He was also unavailable for interviews.

Visible leadership and communications can’t be opted out of

As Manhire writes, it is wrong and unfair to say that the system failure described by Bush was all about Brown's response. He is “the bit of the iceberg above the water line.” He is the one that commissioned the report and has reiterated his apology. Nonetheless, Bush’s review debunks any suggestion that visible leadership and frequent public communications during a time of crisis are somehow optional. It also notes that there was “little utilisation of mainstream media, as lifeline utilities, to amplify critical safety messages.” For anyone who wondered if they were going a bit soft (me) in pointing out that empathetic, timely communications from leaders during times of crisis are not a nice-to-have but a necessity, the review had this to say: “Early messaging lacked empathy to assuage people’s fears and show sympathy and support for those who had been impacted by loss of life and property.” 

“All in charge on notice”

I can’t help but hear this as if it comes from Prince Escalus in Romeo and Juliet (all are punished), but in a written statement, Auckland Central MP Chlöe Swarbrick said the report puts “all in charge on notice”. “Aucklanders must never be let down by their systems and leadership like this ever again” she wrote. There are no two ways about it the report, described as excoriating by Manhire, clearly says Auckland was not prepared and concerningly, that recommendations and issues raised as early as 2016 were not implemented. “From 2016, the council's Auckland civil defence emergency management plan recognised the issues that Auckland faced as a result of infrequent testing and lack of understanding of its emergency response frameworks," it reads. "The plan raised the concern that Auckland's capability to respond to large-scale or widespread events - such as occurred on 27-29 January 2023 - had not been tested, and that operational emergency management plans were not sufficient."

So what now?

The Herald’s Simon Wilson summarises (paywalled) one of the key questions at the heart of Bush’s report. Should Auckland have its own experienced on-call disaster managers? Or should such people be employed by the government and quickly deployed wherever they’re needed? Yet to be answered. As Stuff’s Todd Niall notes, the state of Auckland’s Emergency Management has been under review for a while by the Office of the Auditor General (OAG). A draft OAG report was not able to be provided to the review team, and the mayor’s office did not respond to a question from Stuff as to whether Brown had seen it, as it circulated late in 2022. Bush’s report makes 17 recommendations and Brown has accepted all of them. The report also suggests there could be more to delve into. Given the short time frame, the report notes that those involved are “not convinced we have seen all relevant materials.” The government will do its own reviews of the fatal floods and Cyclone Gabrielle. No one from the office of minister for emergency response was interviewed as part of Bush’s review.

Thank you to Toby Manhire for tagging in yesterday. Was a good test to see if my Mum is still reading and she passed with flying colours.

Doing a solid for early risers

BurgerFuel is fuelling the AM with its first ever breakfast menu! And because they want you firing on all cylinders, the all-day menu will also be cranking first thing. Want a Bastard with onion rings before 9am? You’re in luck, the full BurgerFuel menu will be available from 8am Wednesday - Sunday. Pair your favourite meal with a cup of Good Joe Coffee* and you’re set for the day.
Head to your local BurgerFuel or the BurgerFuel website to learn more.
BurgerFuel breakfast is available Wed-Sun, 8am to 11am for a limited time (sponsored)

*Coffee available at select stores.

Three Waters rebrand happening today but why are we even using the term rebrand?

Stuff, RNZ and the Herald (paywalled) are reporting this morning that Three Waters will be rebranded today. As Thomas Coughlan writes for the Herald, prime minister Chris Hipkins and local government minister Kieran McAnulty will make the announcement today, it will be called the “Affordable Water Reform” and the changes run deeper than a facelift. Sources have told the Herald that Pattrick Smellie’s reported detail (paywalled) of a more localised approach, with 10 entities instead of four, is accurate. Duncan Greive has a brilliant read this morning on why it’s even gotten to the point of using the term “rebrand” when we’re talking about “affordable water infrastructure improvements” (as Hipkins described it). Greive asks a deceptively simple question about the seemingly benign crutch of branding and strikes upon a reason for the reform failing to advance in its soon-to-be previous form. Recommend.

All 17,000 of Wellington’s street lamps at risk of falling 

The thematic similarities this morning are entirely coincidental but as Aucklanders focus on what fell from the sky and failed to materialise from city leaders in late January, Wellingtonians have confirmation they need to keep looking up. Wellington City Council has admitted all 17,000 of Wellington’s street lamps are at risk of falling because, as Stuff’s Tom Hunt and Justin Wong succinctly put it, the council forgot to factor in the wind. In February, the council claimed only a “small handful” of the city’s lights were affected by a fault that was causing lamps to droop and, in some instances, fall to the ground. It now admits it knew about the problem as early as 2018. As the Herald’s Georgina Campbell reports, the council’s chief infrastructure officer confirmed she first heard of the problem in February. Campbell asks why officials further down the chain did not escalate this problem, primarily because the associated risk was someone being killed. Mayor Tory Whanau says she said she was "confident" Wellingtonians could safely go about their business while the council carried out repairs. 

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Click and collect

• This is me pretending to begrudgingly include this morning’s news from Buckingham Palace. At least the speculation can stop.

• National confirms that forming a coalition with the Greens or Te Pāti Māori is “highly unlikely”. To steal a Manhireism from yesterday - Te Pāti Māori are in Chris-maker position in several polls.

• Looks like banks are beginning to move on lifting home loan interest rates

• Stark data visualisation from Bloomberg of job layoffs around the world since October 2022

• Providing inspiration for people aggreived by potholes everywhere, the Terminator took matters into hands and “hasta la vista-ed” one himself. Potholes — turns out they’re a global problem.

Got some feedback about The Bulletin, or anything in the news? Get in touch with me at thebulletin@thespinoff.co.nz.

Why not share The Bulletin with friends, family and colleagues? They might even like it and give you (another) biscuit.

Right now on The Spinoff

Charlotte Muru-Lanning finds out how Alison Holst’s “budget” recipes from 1995 stack up in 2023. Ecosystems in the Hauraki Gulf are collapsing, but Alex Stone has a suggestion for what to do about it. Stewart Sowman-Lund asks a meteorologist if four tornadoes in as many days is as strange as it seems. Alex Casey wants you to hear her out - her cat is doing just fine living inside.

Sporting snippets

• Five talking points ahead of Saturday morning’s T20 series-opener between the Black Caps and Pakistan

• A candid interview with Dame Sophie Pascoe where she reveals her struggle with depression and how her new outlook has changed her life

• Looks like Steven Adams is out of the NBA playoffs. He’s been sidelined since January with a knee injury

No, cities aren’t doomed because of remote work

Much to worry about in our cities at the moment but thought this Curbed article might cheer people up slightly. David Madden is a sociologist and co-director of the Cities Programme at London’s School of Economics and Political Science. Three years after the start of the pandemic, Madden discusses why the rhetoric of doomed cities and remote work killing CBDs fails to account for what urban recovery can look like. It’s got an American context but the idea that Madden posits, that right now could be an interesting moment to renegotiate the purpose of central city areas, applies.