It’s the nays by one vote in cyclone response poll

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

A single vote tipped the scales in favour of the “no” camp in reply to this week's Gisborne Herald webpoll question “do you think the response to the cyclone damage is going well?”

From a total of 210 votes, 80 people (38.1 percent) voted “no”, 79 people (37.6 percent) “yes” and 24 percent ( 51 votes) “in part”.

One voter who voted “no” said: “the response has been muchly uncoordinated. All the various entities are operating in isolation of each other. Even communications with information and timelines for roading is lacking.”

Another said: “We still haven't received any help. We have been forgotten about.”

Other responses from “no” voters included —

“Too slow, not enough resources, too many photo opportunities.”

“Everyone now left to their own clean-up. No control where anything is dumped.”

From the “yes” voters, one respondent said: “I think the country is overwhelmed with the impact of these recent events. We have so many people and services affected. Where do you start? You cannot measure the effect on individuals as each person copes differently. For some, losing a home is massive but for others, losing their garden or road access is equally as massive. It's a long recovery for all.”

Others said: “Give everyone a break. We are a small community and everyone is trying their best. We should have sympathy for everyone.”

“The severity of this event can't be underestimated. The response from local and central government has been good. Seeing the way the community has pulled together to help each other is amazing.”

“For a small region and a lot of compromised infrastructure we are doing well. Repairs can never be everything, everywhere and all at once.”