Rain won't dampen Gisborne's big parade

By STACEY BODGER

GISBORNE - Less than seven weeks out from Gisborne's millennium dawn extravaganza, there is no spectacular sunrise to be seen over the city's Midway Beach.

A northwest wind batters toetoe in the sand dunes as the first rain in three weeks falls from heavy clouds.

Somewhere behind them lies the sun that will be the focus of Gisborne's Ruamano 2000 dawn ceremony, one of New Zealand's two official Millennium Office dawn celebrations.

Records for the past 100 years show odds of 85:15 in favour of a golden sunrise over Midway, the venue for Ruamano 2000.

Organisers understand the elements are one thing they cannot control with a contingency plan, but are determined that even bad weather will not rain on Gisborne's $1.8 million parade.

Derek Allan, First Light Tourism's Year 2000 project manager, says he is continually asked two questions: what if it rains, and will the people come? The answer to both is that the show will go on.

"Rain isn't going to stop anything - we're praying for a glorious sunrise but if it pours, we're still going to be the first city in the world to see the new millennium," he says.

At 5.46 am on January 1, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra will perform while a flotilla of waka and the training ship Spirit of New Zealand head towards the shore.

The ceremony will involve more than 600 performers.

Since David Bowie and then Split Enz pulled out of a planned concert with Dame Kiri, sceptics have predicted the crowds will stay away from Gisborne.

But a series of six-monthly surveys of 600 residents by Mr Allan's team suggests that even if only friends and relatives return to the city, its population will at least double, with a minimum of 62,000 and a maximum of 80,000 extra people in private homes.

Mr Allan believes about 15,000 will journey to see the dawn, while more than 70 sporting, historical and cultural events are tipped to bring in about 25,000 people.

Gisborne District Council spokesman Mike Coyle says the people will come.

"If there's a small crowd we'll cope easily - but it will be huge so we'll get excited about it."

The Millennium Taskforce believes the district is ready. Chairman David Beatson says he is "simply blown away" by plans that will make Gisborne the millennium centre of New Zealand.

The city received $1 million from the Government to produce Ruamano 2000 and has paid for an $8 million spruce-up itself.

Central streets and riversides have been paved, walkways, street furniture and lighting installed and 26 Queen and Washingtonian palms planted on each block.

The council has three "emergency response" teams of more than 80 people who will be on 24-hour call to attend to anything from traffic accidents to oil spills.

As long as people conserve water, as they are asked to do every summer, the council is confident that water and sewage systems will cope.

An operations centre in the council building will be manned continuously and has a direct phone link with emergency services.

Although some accommodation is still available, the council has opened up four city parks as temporary campsites.

Findlay's Bakery and the Gisborne Milk Co-op plan to produce around-the-clock, while supermarkets have begun to stockpile food in coolstores.

Telecom has invested $3.3 million in upgrades and doubled the number of circuits for police, fire and ambulance calls.

Gisborne police will receive 140 extra officers.

Shop and restaurant workers are taking a wait-and-see approach to the festivities.

If the crowds arrive, they look to share in the economic benefits - estimated at $63 million if the city gets 23 days of 55,000 visitors a day, each spending $50.

People on the streets have faith in Year 2000 organisers. George Hunter, aged 68, is prepared for "pleasant pandemonium."

Despite the worries about water and sewage, Mr Allan says the city is prepared.

"We're going to pull this off and at the end, everyone involved can be proud to have helped."