Support for Cyclone Gabrielle

What support is available

The following agencies are able to provide immediate support. If you’re not sure where to go, please contact us on 0800 801 601 or email us at emergencyrecovery@kaingaora.govt.nz and we can help connect you.

• If you need food, welfare or financial help please call MSD on 0800 400 100 or go to Cyclone Gabrielle - Work and Income(external link)
• If you have damage to your home and can’t stay there, please evacuate immediately and head to your local Civil Defence Centre(external link).
• Please keep safe and continue to follow advice from local Civil Defence Emergency Management Groups(external link)
• Find out what Civil Defence support is available on their website(external link)

What to do if your Kāinga Ora home is damaged

We’re reaching out to all our customers in affected areas to check they are safe and understand what support they may need. If you haven’t heard from us, please get in touch with us as soon as you’re able to so we can understand your needs, and help connect you with the right support. You can do this by calling us on 0800 801 601 or email us at emergencyrecovery@kaingaora.govt.nz.

If your home is unsafe to live in, go to your local Civil Defence centre(external link) or call 0800 22 22 00 to get help with urgent accommodation or shelter. Alternatively, if you can, get in touch with family or friends who you can stay with.

Support for customers with disabilities

Support for deaf, disabled people and their whānau can be found by calling Whakarongorau Aotearoa, New Zealand Telehealth Services - 24 hours a day, everyday Text 8988 or call 0800 111 213.

This Helpline team can also help with:

• Any general health concerns you have
• If a support worker/carer is unavailable or hasn’t arrived
• And to help right now, they can connect you with information and support about the recent severe weather and flooding.

Whaikaha (The Ministry of Disabled People) has up-to-date information about the cyclone and floods on their website Cyclone Gabrielle: Where to go for help | Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled People(external link)

The Disabled Persons Assembly(external link) also has practical resources for disabled people who have been affected by the flooding on their website.

For our Deaf Community, Deaf Aotearoa(external link) has information about the floods and cyclone translated for the Deaf Community into NZSL.

More information

Local updates are being provided by Civil Defence Emergency Management Groups(external link).

• Information on support Cyclone Gabrielle(external link)
• Further information about the cyclone can be found at civildefence.govt.nz(external link)which is updated regularly.
• Get up-to-date information for any road closures or delays before heading out by visiting the NZ Transport Agency website(external link) or following their social media channels.
  • For local road information - Gisborne District Council(external link), Napier City Council(external link) or Hastings District Council(external link) websites
• https://www.metservice.com/(external link)
• https://getready.govt.nz/en/(external link)