New Napier City community resilience and communications manager Marcus Hayes-Jones, originally from England, had been on the job just a few weeks when he heard a tsunami might be on the way this week - up a ladder at the time, at home, trying to install a garage door. He talks to reporter Doug Laing about how things kick in when disaster may, or may not, be just around the corner
1 Firstly, explain the job and its long-winded title?
A: The job is to develop community resilience within the Napier community, through public education, relationship building with businesses and through the Civil Defence volunteers. In the event of a disaster, either man-made or natural, it is to provide Civil Defence leadership and support to the Napier community via various forms of communication/media, while co-ordinating the response of council staff and volunteers in the area.
2 What background did you bring to the job?
A: I have been extremely lucky in my career to date, to be trained in high-pressure planning environments, from my time in the British and New Zealand armies. Additionally, I have been involved in training while serving, a career which has provided me with a skill set ensuring I am able to continue the excellent work of my predecessor in training and preparing council staff, volunteers and the community prior to an event.