New Zealand: Cyclone Gabrielle damages could cost over $8 billion; state of emergency extended
As New Zealand continues to reel from the devastating aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle which has killed 11 people while authorities are still looking for thousands of others who remain missing a week after what the country’s Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has called the biggest natural disaster this century. Additionally, the officials in Wellington, on Monday (February 20) warned that the total cost of this unprecedented storm will cross $8 billion.
Hipkins has also extended the national state of emergency declared in New Zealand for seven more days for recovery and relief efforts after the cyclone hit the North Island’s northernmost region on February 12 and headed towards the east coast leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. He previously also said that the storm has caused damage “on a scale not seen in New Zealand for at least a generation”.
Meanwhile, the country’s Finance Minister Grant Robertson, who has also been appointed as the Cyclone Recovery Minister, on Monday, said that the cyclone could cost the government around $8.42 billion (NZ$13.5 billion). Recently, at a press conference, Hipkins announced a $187 million (NZ$300 million) cyclone relief package which would, “reconnect our communities and future-proof our nation’s infrastructure” and said that the investment will be “significant and it will require hard decisions”, reported Reuters.
He added, “We won’t shy away from those hard decisions and are working on a suite of measures to support New Zealanders by building back better, building back safer and building back smarter.” The aforementioned relief package would provide NZ$250 million to fix critical roads in the cyclone-hit region while the other NZ$50 million will be used as emergency support for businesses.
The police have also confirmed the death of 11 people in North Island’s Hawke’s Bay while some 2,200 people remain unaccounted for. Speaking to the AM show, on Monday, New Zealand police commissioner Andrew Coster said that the death toll is expected to rise. He also noted the difficulty with communicating and said it is hindering their efforts to make contact with affected people.
In a bid to bridge this gap, the country also has also deployed 60 Elon Musk-owned Starlink satellites while 30 more are on the way, to contact 15,000 residents of the cyclone-hit region as thousands still remain without power. Meanwhile, search and rescue teams continue to work in areas which have been damaged because of Cyclone Gabrielle, reported Reuters.
