A Community Response Group (CRG) formed in July to mitigate natural hazards on Mt Iron, with a specific focus on wildfires, is already making good progress. 

The CRG, which is made up of residents, representatives from Emergency Management Otago and Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC), is working in collaboration with other agencies, including Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) and the local fire brigade, to manage risks and educate residents of dangers at Mt Iron.

The group’s progress is a positive outcome after a tense meeting in February this year in which a number of Mt Iron residents accused local agencies of not doing enough to help keep residents safe.

“The CRG is looking at a whole range of things for how people can reduce their risk, from planning and evacuations and pushing the messages about planning and preparing,” Otago Regional Council Upper Clutha emergency management officer Oliver Varley said. 

The 374 properties and 260-odd buildings within the 366ha Mt Iron ‘red zone’ have a high risk of wildfire.

The red zone is surrounded by flammable manuka and kanuka; it has limited access for firefighters or egress for residents escaping a fire; its steep slope would accelerate fire spread and make fighting it difficult; and Mt Iron’s location on the urban/rural divide increases ignition risk.

Albert Town from Mount Iron.

“Any fire that starts at the bottom edge of Mt Iron could very quickly cut off the escape routes,” FENZ principal rural fire officer Mark Mawhinney told the Wānaka App. “It would threaten and damage houses and if people can’t leave the consequences could be quite severe.”

FENZ has shared support and advice with Mt Iron residents for many years but having a CRG which can work in collaboration with organisations and share information among residents is “the gold standard,” Mark said.

Oliver said in the short term the group had focused on having a robust alert system to ensure the whole community was notified in the event of a fire so they can react quickly.

“We really can't rely on one alerting system alone - we need an approach that has a lot of contingencies,” he said.

The CRG has created a community WhatsApp group for the Mt Iron community; there’s an emergency mobile alert already in place; and the group is looking at distributing handheld air sirens to a number of residents so they can alert neighbours if there is an event.

“That’s been one of the key areas of focus - alerting and messaging,” Oliver said.

He said the CRG had also developed an evacuation plan flyer which is going to print shortly: “It has information for evacuations that can be easily accessed by residents and visitors.”

FENZ was also offering advice on creating defensible space around properties and Oliver said the local fire brigade had been doing a lot of work with the CRG too.

Longer term projects were being identified but alerting and evacuation plans remained the priorities entering the summer months.

Having a CRG in place provided a “really good link” to connect agencies and residents and share important information, Oliver said.

“We’re certainly very keen to support them as much as we can,” Mark said. 

Both Oliver and Mark said any individuals or groups who want advice on helping ensure their properties are as safe as possible should get in touch.

PHOTOS: Wānaka App