NZ households unprepared for natural disasters

New Zealand households unprepared for natural disasters

Many New Zealand households are not prepared for a natural disaster, Statistics New Zealand said today, based on the latest information from the New Zealand General Social Survey 2008 (NZGSS).

“Recent natural disasters affecting our Pacific neighbours highlight the importance of this information,” Conal Smith manager at Statistics New Zealand said.

“While most New Zealand households have food for three days, less than half have a three-day supply of water, and one-quarter have a household emergency plan.”

Having enough food and water for three days, and a household emergency plan are considered basic preparations for a natural disaster.

Overall, 15 percent of households have made all three of these preparations. The survey also found that almost 90 percent of households with dependent children have not made all three basic preparations.

Other key findings from the NZGSS include:

• households that live in an owner-occupied home tend to be more prepared than households in a rented home, and households with home contents insurance tend to be more prepared than uninsured households

• fewer households in the Auckland region have a household emergency plan compared with the rest of New Zealand.

For more information about how prepared New Zealand households are for a natural disaster, see the NZGSS Fact Sheet: Natural disaster preparation at home.

The NZGSS surveyed more than 8,000 individuals over the 12 months from April 2008 to March 2009.

Further information about the NZGSS is on the Statistics New Zealand website at www.stats.govt.nz/nzgss.

More detail on preparation for natural disasters is available at www.getthru.govt.nz and www.eq-iq.co.nz.

Geoff Bascand

4 March 2010

Government Statistician

END

© Scoop Media