Auckland Tsunami Warning Test Fails: ‘I’m Doomed, Didn’t Hear Anything’

A test of Auckland’s tsunami warning system failed to reach many beach residents, leading one to complain: “I am doomed, I did not hear anything.”

More than 50 people in various coastal parts of Auckland have reported on the Auckland Emergency Management Facebook page that they did not receive text messages or were unable to hear the sirens that were tested at noon today.

A woman who was at the Ōrewa surf club at the time said she did not receive a text message and that she “really couldn’t hear” the sirens, the two newest sirens in town that went live today.

Another woman in nearby Red Beach said: “You could barely hear it in Red Beach. I have no idea what is being said. There is no text alert.”

Residents of Manly, Gulf Harbor, Castor Bay, West Harbor, Hobsonville, Glendowie, Howick, Beachlands and Papakura reported that they heard nothing.

A Beachlands resident posted: “No text messages or sirens heard at Beachlands and we are right by the ocean.”

Hobsonville resident Paul Chang commented, “I’m doomed, I didn’t hear anything.”

But other residents of Ōrewa and Greenhithe reported hearing the sirens “loud and clear.”

The test was independent of the national text alert system that was used when New Zealand entered the Covid-19 level 4 lockdown in March and again when Auckland moved to level 3 and the rest of New Zealand went to level 2 in August. .

Civil Defense Emergency Management communications advisor Iona Wassilieff said those alerts were sent to every cell phone in the country that was modern enough to receive them.

“Most are now capable,” he said.

In contrast, today’s regional text alerts were sent only to people who signed up to receive them.

Wassilieff said the regional registration system reached out to people whose cell phones weren’t modern enough to receive national alerts, and also allowed them to choose to receive lower-level alerts.

“The threshold for sending messages on mobile emergency alerts is really high; there has to be a serious risk to life, health or property,” he said.

“Regionals can do it at a lower level. People can choose the level of emergency they want to be informed of.”

A spokesperson for Auckland Emergency Management said the region’s 44 tsunami warning sirens were also tested today. However, they are only in 13 locations: five on the Hibiscus coast from near Leigh to Ōrewa, six on the west coast from Bethells Beach to Huia, and two in lower parts of the upper Waitematā harbor at Te Atatū and Herald Island.

“They are in the areas most at risk in the event of a tsunami,” the spokesperson said.

Auckland’s east coast south of Ōrewa could be considered lower risk because it is protected by the Coromandel Peninsula and nearby islands, but the spokesperson said the current network dates back to before the region’s previous seven districts merged to form the Auckland Council in 2010.

“Auckland has more than 3,000 km of coastline, which means that many coastal communities are potentially at risk of damaging tsunamis,” he said.

“Most of the current sirens in the region were installed by the former Waitākere and Rodney District Councils. Before we consider expanding our regional siren warning network, we must first understand the specific risks that damaging tsunamis will bring to each community. .

“Auckland Emergency Management is in the midst of a 10-year project aimed at understanding more about tsunami risk in Auckland. This includes finding out who and what is at risk, and how we prepare and alert our communities to the dangers of a tsunami. harmful from near and far sources.

“Our first priority is to reshape our tsunami inundation (flood) zones using the latest modeling techniques. Once we have completed the new modeling, we will begin looking for the best way to support our coastal communities and support the national warning system. existing mobile emergency alert. “

She said that today’s test was also affected by strong winds.

“Due to the wind today, we were unable to conduct acoustic tests on our new sirens in Ōrewa. In some areas, the wind may have affected the ability to hear the sirens,” he said.

“Now that the tests are complete, we will review the information we have to identify any problems.

“We are already aware of the problems with two of the sirens within the network: in Te Atatū north and Huia, and Auckland Emergency Management will investigate the cause of this in the coming days and weeks. This underscores the importance of regularly testing our alert systems. “.