Tsunami siren testing 24 September

On 24 Saturday September tsunami sirens will sound for:

10 minutes at 9.20am
30 seconds at 10am

“Not everyone will hear the sirens because they are spread out along the coast, closer to some homes than others. But they are just one of many systems we have in place to warn of tsunamis,” said Curt Martin, WDC Infrastructure Projects and Support Manager.

“Our community networks will be monitoring the test and reporting back to us.”

Mr Martin said the test is an opportunity for people to educate themselves about what to do when a siren is sounded.

“Tsunami sirens and their strobe lights are a strong signal to seek more information. During a real tsunami warning the siren will sound intermittently. The strobe light will flicker throughout the event, from beginning to end. They are part of a system of information that comes from all sorts of places including the media, friends and relatives and neighbours during a real event. They are not the main system and they are not designed to warn everyone.”

“On Saturday 24 we want people to seek information. When you turn on your TV, radio or computer there should be no sign of a tsunami, because it is just a test, but just in case there is a coincidence and the test coincides with tsunami alert from the Ministry of Civil Defence, people who tune in will be given the information they need.”

Mr Martin emphasised that tsunami sirens are not an evacuation warnings.

Northland’s Civil Defence Emergency Management Senior Programme Manager Graeme MacDonald said the sirens were designed to give people early warning that they needed to seek information. That helped to prevent panic, ensure the public were well informed and knew what to do when or if instructions were issued that an evacuation was needed. If people automatically made the decision to leave that could cause a number of unnecessary safety issues.

“New Zealand’s Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management gets news out to all media as soon as the possibility of a tsunami is confirmed and we advise our coastal emergency networks and emergency services. At that point the tsunami sirens are activated to tell people to seek information.

The network of 70 sirens is a joint project by Northland Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, those members include the region’s three district councils, the Northland Regional Council, emergency services and lifeline utilities and Northpower, which built and installed the devices which are activated by Northpower’s existing ripple control system, free of charge. It is jointly funded by Whangarei District Council ($60,000) and the Civil Defence Emergency Management Group ($60,000), with significant support from Northpower.