Getting through a natural disaster with a disability

For people with disabilities, even daily life can require some workarounds - let alone a natural disaster.

With this in mind, the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office (WREMO) has launched a new emergency preparedness guide developed by, and for, disabled people.

Renee Patete, who's been blind since birth, said most things were easier at home, in the house she'd known for the past 24 years.

"In an emergency, it's important to know where you are, and what you have around you, and who you have around you," she said.

She told RNZ she knew where all the exits were and where to drop during an earthquake to avoid falling objects, and the house was well-stocked with food.

But that was not always the reality - a natural disaster could strike at any time.

"I suppose the best thing to do is to be able to clearly communicate your needs to anyone else," she said. "Having in mind how you're going to quickly and efficiently communicate what you need to strangers is really important."

This, and other advice designed with the input of people with all kinds of disabilities, was included in WREMO's new guide.

Patete, who was an intern in the National Emergency Management Agency's communications team through the Whaikaha/Ministry for Disabled People's summer intern programme, had been a part of the creative process.

She said the result was a practical resource for planning ahead and preparing well for a disaster, "no matter the individual's ability".

"We talk a lot about what everyone should do, or what we should all do," Patete said. "But that doesn't necessarily always apply to everyone."

She explained advice like drop-cover-hold was not very useful for someone in a wheelchair - instead, they might prefer to lock, cover, hold - locking their wheels and curling over.

It was the first step in a wider project responding to long-standing evidence that disabled people face disproportionate impacts in disasters, based on a framework designed at the University of Sydney which emphasised the input of people with disabilities themselves.

It recognised the expertise disabled people already used to manage daily life.

"Centering it on the person is a really big step forward," Patete said. "We talk a lot about the people that help, the other people that can support you and what we need from other people, but actually this guide is about what can you do, what are your strengths, what can you do to solve these problems?"

WREMO's project lead Renee Santos has an invisible disability.

"Controlled well by medication now, but when I started working on this guide, I was really struggling with mobility, so I came in and I was like, 'What can I do to improve outcomes for my community?'"

WREMO's adaptation of the Sydney guide was shaped by groups of disabled people at national, regional and local levels, who were paid for their time like any other contractor.

The work was backed by Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled People, and the National Emergency Management Agency. They were now developing a national version, including in alternate formats like braille or audio.

Santos said the plan was to create peer-led workshops to go with the guide, and then, she hoped, forums to bring emergency services, emergency management, and disabled people together.

"I think that's where the real change will come in the system."

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