Marton Rotary members (from left) Humphrey Calkin, Ray Sisley and Jenny Pain loading items destined for Hawkes Bay. Photo / Supplied
Members of the Marton Rotary Club have witnessed the devastation left behind by Cyclone Gabrielle during a trip to drop off much-needed supplies.
The club delivered a truckload of items to Hawke’s Bay this weekend.
Until you experienced it for yourself, it was hard to get your head around the scale of the damage, member Ray Sisley said.
“There was a motor caravan [pushed in] to a tree, cars upturned in maize fields, and we visited a house where the water had been up through the ceiling.
“Silt was just everywhere and had destroyed the lot.
“You just think, “How did so much water come through here?’.”
Sisley said Marton had co-ordinated with the Stortford Lodge Rotary Club in Hastings, which had set up a “very well organised” distribution centre alongside the St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church
It was important to supply items that were needed, not gifts that would end up being their “junk”.
“We got a list and our members rallied around,” he said.
“A number of them are farmers who have generators, which they particularly needed, along with water blasters, beds and bedding.”
The bedding was destined for a marae in the area.
“We were told they were trying to feed and accommodate around 1000 people, which I just couldn’t believe,” Sisley said.
“It was great that we were able to respond to their need.”
Marton Christian Welfare provided the truck and Sisley and Rangitīkei mayor and fellow Rotary club member Andy Watson left early on Saturday morning.
Along the way, they stopped to help in a working bee for a flood-ravaged home before dropping the supplies at a warehouse on the outskirts of Havelock North.
“They are going to need help for a long time yet, it’s not going to go away,” Sisley said.
“We just saw a little of Hawke’s Bay. What about Wairoa, Gisborne, Northland, and Coromandel? The scale of it is enormous.
“It could be us next time. You never know when it’s your turn.”
The Whanganui Mayoral Relief Fund has been set up for locals to donate to cyclone relief, and the city has paired with Hastings as part of Local Government New Zealand’s adopt-a-community, a fundraising initiative that partners councils with cyclone-stricken centres.
People who want to contribute to the fund can do so via account number 01-0790-0157888-00 with the reference number CG23.
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