Post by fish on Apr 7, 2024 11:53:07 GMT 12
Here is an example of someone dieing due to doing something (with hindsight) fairly stupid, and could have possibly been avoided if there was clear and more simple warnings.
A couple were trying to get home to Napier ahead of cyclone Gabrielle. Napier Taupo Rd (a state highway) got closed, so they went the Napier Taihape Rd, which is a fecking goat track. This was blocked with slips and fallen trees all over the place. The road is the responsibility of Hastings Council at one end at Ruapehu Council at the other. It is not a state highway for NZTA had nothing to do with it. A member of the public informed Palmy Council of a big slip blocking it, so Palmy advised Hastings, who closed the road. No one advised Ruapehu.
The couple started down the road and got blocked by a slip. Then they couldn't get back cause of dozens more slips and got trapped. They were there for 3 DAYS before they were found. The guy died of hypothermia in hospital.
The couple checked the NZTA website and it didn't say the Napier Taihape Rd was closed, so they went down it. They didn't know NZTA has nothing to do with that road. At the time, Hastings roading contractors were completely slammed trying to close roads and what not in the midst of a major disaster.
So there is all this -shoulda-coulda-woulda stuff going on with 3 different roading authorities. Parking all that though, there are two steps around personal responsibility. Attempting the Napier Taihape Rd while a cyclone is setting it is very marginal. Secondly, if you were going to attempt that road, I would have thought you'd need to plan to get stuck and take appropriate food and gear with you. A gas stove, food and warm clothes or blankets would cover it. For the guy to die of hypothermia is sad. He must have gotten wet investigating slips and couldn't warm himself up.
Noting the couple set off on the road at 10:15 pm, it is likely they weren't that well planned out in what they were attempting, and would have drive straight into a shit-storm of the cyclone, all in the dark.
There is a couple of paradoxes here, in that the stuffed story says communication failings between Palmy, Hastings and Ruapehu Councils contributed to the guys deaths. I don't think that is warranted given the shitstorm that was going on. But at the same time, this demonstrates a need for a National forecaster to deliver clear and simple warnings regarding incoming severe weather (which is the paradox, a central agency to communicate clearly and deliver warnings). I'm fairly sure the warnings in place were probably adequate, and it is not clear if the couple saw them or not. All that said, this is a demonstration of a case where we need a National forecaster to issue warnings like, "don't try driving long distances on goat tracks into the face of an incoming cyclone".
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350235175/road-disaster-lack-communication-and-mans-death
A couple were trying to get home to Napier ahead of cyclone Gabrielle. Napier Taupo Rd (a state highway) got closed, so they went the Napier Taihape Rd, which is a fecking goat track. This was blocked with slips and fallen trees all over the place. The road is the responsibility of Hastings Council at one end at Ruapehu Council at the other. It is not a state highway for NZTA had nothing to do with it. A member of the public informed Palmy Council of a big slip blocking it, so Palmy advised Hastings, who closed the road. No one advised Ruapehu.
The couple started down the road and got blocked by a slip. Then they couldn't get back cause of dozens more slips and got trapped. They were there for 3 DAYS before they were found. The guy died of hypothermia in hospital.
The couple checked the NZTA website and it didn't say the Napier Taihape Rd was closed, so they went down it. They didn't know NZTA has nothing to do with that road. At the time, Hastings roading contractors were completely slammed trying to close roads and what not in the midst of a major disaster.
So there is all this -shoulda-coulda-woulda stuff going on with 3 different roading authorities. Parking all that though, there are two steps around personal responsibility. Attempting the Napier Taihape Rd while a cyclone is setting it is very marginal. Secondly, if you were going to attempt that road, I would have thought you'd need to plan to get stuck and take appropriate food and gear with you. A gas stove, food and warm clothes or blankets would cover it. For the guy to die of hypothermia is sad. He must have gotten wet investigating slips and couldn't warm himself up.
Noting the couple set off on the road at 10:15 pm, it is likely they weren't that well planned out in what they were attempting, and would have drive straight into a shit-storm of the cyclone, all in the dark.
There is a couple of paradoxes here, in that the stuffed story says communication failings between Palmy, Hastings and Ruapehu Councils contributed to the guys deaths. I don't think that is warranted given the shitstorm that was going on. But at the same time, this demonstrates a need for a National forecaster to deliver clear and simple warnings regarding incoming severe weather (which is the paradox, a central agency to communicate clearly and deliver warnings). I'm fairly sure the warnings in place were probably adequate, and it is not clear if the couple saw them or not. All that said, this is a demonstration of a case where we need a National forecaster to issue warnings like, "don't try driving long distances on goat tracks into the face of an incoming cyclone".
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350235175/road-disaster-lack-communication-and-mans-death
