NZRT21 helping Karekare on the long road to recovery from Cyclone Gabrielle

NZRT21 (Selwyn Response Team) is a New Zealand Civil Defence Response Team based in Canterbury. We responded to the Auckland Region after Cyclone Gabrielle, mostly supporting isolated communities on the West Coast of Auckland. One of these communities was Karekare, which was completely isolated by numerous slips with no electricity or communications for several days. NZRT21 Team members were some of the first responders into Karekare; we did needs assessment, damage assessment and helped on the ground as we could. The damage was immense, and the community spirit even bigger, and when we returned to our communities, families and jobs after our deployment, we wanted to help out a bit more.

NZRT21 is undertaking a 30km fundraising walk along Christchurch's Summit Rd (the longest road in Christchurch), and the adjacent Crater Rim walkway, on 13 May 2023, with the aim of raising money to support the community.