The Taranaki Emergency Management Office (TEMO) on Marsland Hill in Robe Street, New Plymouth, is the purpose-built nerve centre for the response to any major emergency or incident in the region.
Two permanent Emergency Management Officers work from these offices and keep the building in a ready state for any emergencies
TEMO is activated in response to a major incident or incidents which require a high degree of co-ordination and support among the agencies involved.
The office can be activated for any emergency, not just a Civil Defence emergency.
TEMO is run according to NZ Co-ordinated Incident Management Systems (CIMS) principles, which are standard for all emergency services in New Zealand. In order of priority, response principles are:
| 1 Provide for the safety and health of all responders 2 Save lives 3 Reduce suffering 4 Protect public health |
5 Protect critical infrastructure 6 Protect property 7 Protect the environment 8 Reduce economic and social losses |
TEMO operates its own stand-alone Local Area Network backed up by two alternate computer systems.
TEMO's roles
TEMO can be activated to assist an agency such as the Fire Service or the police during an incident. For example, during the Patea freezing works fire in February 2008, TEMO assisted the Fire Service by helping to organise evacuations from the town, and opening a welfare centre in Hawera for evacuees.
In a major incident a Civil Defence emergency may be declared, in which case the Civil Defence Emergency Management Group becomes the lead agency and the response is directed from TEMO.
What's at TEMO
Click on each desk/office name for more information
| Controller's desk | Welfare desk | Operations desk | Logistics desk | Planning and intelligence desk |
| Liaison desk | EOC Manager / EM Adviser | Controller's office | Public information office | Call centre |
Controller's desk
The Civil Defence Controller leads the Civil Defence response, and has wide-ranging powers if an emergency is declared.
The large desk is where the Controller conducts meetings with desk managers who would normally include:
- The Welfare Manager.
- The Operations Manager.
- The Logistics Manager.
- The Planning and Intelligence Manager.
- The Lifelines Utility Co-ordinator.
- The Recovery Manager.
- Representatives of the police, the Fire Service and the Taranaki District Health Board.
- The Public Information Manager.
Together, they all make up the Incident Management Team, and their responsibilities include:
- Assessing priorities.
- Developing and implementing an Incident Action Plan.
- Managing resources.
- Co-ordinating overall emergency activities.
- Co-ordinating the activities of outside agencies.
- Authorising the release of information to the media.
- Monitoring costs.
Welfare desk
This desk is likely to include the Welfare Manager and representatives from:
- The Ministry of Social Development
- Victim Support
- Child Youth and Family
- Housing NZ
- Taranaki District Health Board
- Companion Animal Welfare
- The Red Cross
- The Salvation Army
This team liaises closely with the Operations desk regarding the opening of welfare centres, the transport of evacuees and similar issues.
Operations desk
The Operations Manager and the staff at this desk are responsible for ensuring that the "actions" of the Incident Action Plan are carried out.
For example, if people have to be evacuated and a welfare centre opened, the operations desk will co-ordinate, manage and report back on transport of evacuees, the sealing-off of the danger area and so on.
This would involve liaison with various agencies, organisations and individuals such as police, Fire Service, bus companies and welfare centre volunteers.
The operations desk staff are often referred to as the "doers".
Logistics desk
The Logistics Manager and the staff at this desk are responsible for locating, purchasing and delivery of all equipment, supplies, personnel, facilities and transport required by the Incident Action Plan.
To continue with the example above, they would need to make sure that there were buses to ferry the evacuees to the emergency centre, and that there were enough staff at the emergency centre for the next shift, etc.
The Logistic desk staff are often referred to as the "getters".
Planning and intelligence desk
The Planning and Intelligence manager and the staff at this desk have a large role. Their tasks include:
- Collecting, analysing and presenting up-to-date information on the incident and emergency, including GIS data.
- Preparing and distributing Situation Reports, or "Sitreps", which are produced at regular intervals to keep all parties informed.
- Preparing, distributing and updating the Incident Action Plan decided upon by the Incident Management Team.
Although the list seems short, the collection, verification and analysis of information requires a lot of insight and time.
The people at this desk are often referred to as the "thinkers".
Liaison desk
Depending on the nature of the emergency or incident, a range of people could be at this desk, including:
- Lifelines Utilities Co-ordinator (see below).
- Power and lines company representatives.
- Roading authority representatives.
- Telephone company representatives.
- District council officers who deal with such things as water supplies and waste.
- Other representatives.
The Lifelines Utilities Co-ordinator provides a link between the all the organisations that provide essential services such as, power, water, sanitation, telecommunications, roads and so on.
EOC Manager and Emergency Management Adviser
When it is operational, TEMO is known as an Emergency Operations Centre, or EOC. The Manager is responsible for ensuring the EOC can function effectively, with all necessary systems up and running. These are the professional emergency management staff and they also act as advisers to the Controller and the Incident Management Team. They are also responsible for health and safety within TEMO.
The Regional Emergency Management Adviser is a representative of the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management, and acts as a link between TEMO and the central agency.
Controller's office
The Controller has an office that he/she is able to use during the incident — for interviews, taking calls of a sensitive nature, or simply to have a space to think and do business away from the activity and noise of the EOC.
Public Information office
The Public Information Management (PIM) team prepares messages telling the public what they need to know, what they need to do and how they need to do it. The information must be easy to understand, and not open to misinterpretation.
They also provide the news media with information and try to ensure that they report correct and relevant facts.
Information is disseminated via the internet, via media releases and inteviews with the media, and (particularly during the recovery phase) via targeted newsletters directed at the people affected by the incident or emergency.
The PIM team also organises and manages VIP visits to the affected area, and media conferences.
Call centre
The call centre is the public's first point of contact if they call TEMO during an emergency.
Call centre staff answer queries, record details of people needing help and transfer calls to relevant staff.
The telephone system is equipped to deliver a pre-recorded update at the beginning of each call, which can ease the pressure on call centre staff.
Communications room
This contains two-way radio equipment, and fax machines. The radio equipment is used during an emergency if landline or cellphone communications break down.
TEMO has an agreement with the local Amateur Radio Club to staff the radio room in such an event.
Canteen
The canteen is where those working at TEMO during an incident and emergency can have a break, and enjoy light refreshments and recharge themselves for the next period of work.
It is important to keep staff well fed and watered to keep their energy levels up and morale high. The operations centre can be a very stressful environment during an emergency.
