Launching the blue tsunami evacuation zone

The tsunami zone across Canterbury will be one colour as of today, Tuesday 6 October.

The entire existing evacuation zone in the event of a tsunami will now be blue, replacing the red, orange and yellow zones.

This is part of a national change to simplify tsunami evacuation zones and make it easier for people to know what to do.

Northland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Hawkes Bay have already moved to one blue tsunami evacuation zone.

What does this blue zone change mean for people living on the east coast of Hurunui?

For those living at or visiting Leithfield Beach, Amberley Beach, Gore Bay, Motunau, Hurunui River Mouth and Claverley/Conway:

If you were previously in the yellow, orange or red zone, you are now in the blue zone. What you should do remains the same: If you feel a long or strong earthquake, move inland or to higher ground so you are out of the blue tsunami evacuation zone.

Exception for Leithfield Beach

If you were previously in the yellow zone (low risk) at Leithfield, you need to check whether you are in the new blue zone, or whether you are no longer in an evacuation zone. The previous yellow zone included the whole of Leithfield as a precaution and was intended to only be used in a rare, very large tsunami coming from across the Pacific Ocean. In moving from three zones to one zone to be used for all tsunamis, including those that may only flood a small amount of land, as well as rare and very large tsunamis that may flood a lot of land - there has been a change to how far inland the zone goes to avoid evacuating too many people. The new blue zone includes all areas where tsunami modelling shows tsunami water could reach.

Tsunami Safety for Hurunui:

• Long or strong, get gone – if you feel a rolling-motion earthquake for longer than a minute or a strong earthquake that makes it hard to stand up, you need to leave. When the shaking stops, head immediately to the nearest high ground or as far inland as you can without waiting for an official warning.
• Do not wait for an official warning from Civil Defence Emergency Management, an emergency mobile alert on your phone, or sirens.
• A tsunami could arrive within minutes or a couple of hours, depending on where you are in Canterbury.
• Walk or bike if you can so you don’t get stuck in traffic.
• Stay out of the blue tsunami evacuation zone until you are told it is safe to return. The first tsunami wave may not be the biggest and large waves or surges can continue for many hours.
• If you are outside the blue tsunami evacuation zone you do not need to evacuate. Evacuating when you don’t need to can make traffic jams worse and make it harder for people closer to the coast to get out.
• If a tsunami is coming from across the Pacific Ocean you will not feel the earthquake but there will be time for an official warning from Civil Defence Emergency Management, which will tell you the area you need to evacuate or stay out of.

Stay Informed:

Keep checking official Civil Defence channels for up-to-date information. These include the Hurunui District Council website and Facebook page, and radio stations such as Compass FM 104.9 FM and RNZ 101.7

• Be prepared – Emergencies can happen anytime, anywhere. Check out getready.govt.nz for tips to make sure you’re prepared.
• Have a plan – Have an evacuation plan and possible route for your household, including pets. Think about where you would go and, if possible, make a plan with family or friends who live outside the tsunami zone to stay with them if you need to evacuate. Share any official warnings you hear with family and friends near the coast.

Did you know?

The blue tsunami evacuation zone is based on computer modelling.

The largest tsunami risk to the Hurunui is understood to come from a very large earthquake off the coast of South America. It would take approximately 12 to 15 hours to reach Canterbury and is considered quite rare, with occurrences estimated at least 500 years apart.

To see tsunami zones around Canterbury: https://www.cdemcanterbury.govt.nz/hazards/tsunamis

To see tsunami zones around New Zealand: https://getready.govt.nz/tsunami-evacuation-zones

Further tsunami and Civil Defence information found on Council’s website:

https://www.hurunui.govt.nz/council/news?item=id:2qb8zog1117q9s43j5xt ‘Tsunami awareness could safe your life’

https://www.hurunui.govt.nz/community/cd/hazards-in-your-district ‘Hazards in your district’

https://www.hurunui.govt.nz/community/cd/civil-defence-in-hurunui ‘Civil Defence in Hurunui’

Key contact:

Allan Grigg
Emergency Management Officer

📩 allan.grigg@hurunui.govt.nz