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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-02-23 Daily Xml
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Ministerial Statement

CHRISTCHURCH EARTHQUAKE

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (14:00): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. M.D. RANN: The rescue and recovery effort now underway in the aftermath of yesterday's earthquake that shattered our sister city of Christchurch in New Zealand is becoming increasingly grim. While some people are being pulled from the rubble of fallen buildings alive and unscathed, some are having limbs amputated to free them from the wreckage, and in too many instances bodies are being recovered.

Media reports coming out of New Zealand are putting the number of those who have either perished or are missing in the hundreds. Again, our heartfelt sympathies lie with the many thousands of people who are affected by this disaster and our thoughts are with them now and over the coming days as the full realisation of the horror of this tragedy unfolds.

Yesterday, I informed the house that I had been in contact with the New Zealand government to offer assistance from South Australia in whatever form we could: search and rescue, emergency services, paramedics, medical officers and police. The New Zealand Prime Minister, John Key, has described the disaster as possibly 'New Zealand's darkest day'. He has said that, 'No words can spare our pain. We are witnessing the havoc caused by a violent and ruthless act of nature.' Prime Minister Key has today declared a state of national emergency in New Zealand.

I can report to the house that South Australia Police is now preparing to send 32 officers as part of a wider Australian contingent of more than 300 police to assist their counterparts in Christchurch. The South Australian contingent will be made up of a superintendent, three sergeants, 27 officers and a planning/administrative officer.

New South Wales Police Commissioner, Andrew Scipione, who is organising the nation-wide deployment, has been in constant contact with his counterpart, New Zealand Police Commissioner, Howard Broad, since the earthquake struck. The contingent is expected to depart on Friday. South Australian officers will work alongside New Zealand police assisting in traffic control, general patrols and providing security for the people of Christchurch. We wish the contingent of South Australian police well in their very important duties in Christchurch.

In addition to South Australia's contingent, New South Wales will provide about 200 officers and others will come from Victoria, Queensland and the Australian Federal Police. I am informed that the deployment of our officers to Christchurch can be accommodated without a significant impact on existing SAPOL operations.

Since the earthquake hit, our Metropolitan Fire Service Chief Officer, Grant Lupton, has been in constant contact with Emergency Management Australia, which is leading Australia's assistance response. As a request could come at any minute due to the instability of the area and ongoing aftershocks—in fact, there was a significant aftershock a short time ago—the MFS State Coordination Centre has been activated and is in full operation, preparing for the possible deployment of South Australian emergency service personnel. They are liaising closely with the State Emergency Service (SES), the Country Fire Service (CFS) and the South Australian Ambulance Service.

South Australia's team of 42 Urban Search and Rescue personnel is now on stand-by and can be deployed as soon as a request is made. At this stage a total of 148 Australian Urban Search and Rescue specialists have been deployed to Christchurch at the request of the New Zealand government. Seventy-four specialists have been deployed from New South Wales and 74 from Queensland. Japan, Britain and the United States are also among countries sending rescuers to help.

These rescue teams are experts at recovering people who are trapped or affected by structural collapse, and consist of highly trained emergency services workers, doctors, engineers and search dogs. They have expert search, rescue, medical, and engineering and support capabilities. South Australia has also made offers of medical and nursing staff through the Australian Health Protection Committee, which is the central organising committee.

Today, our Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, has made it clear that, as Australians, we view New Zealanders not just as our neighbours but also our family. New Zealand has been side by side with us in times of peril, in war and in peace, since the ANZAC legend was born almost 100 years ago. That tradition continues. On behalf of South Australia, this government will stand with New Zealand in its hour of need and continue to offer whatever assistance we can in the coming days and weeks.

Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (14:06): Further to the Premier's ministerial statement, I have been in touch with the health minister in New Zealand, Tony Ryall, and he has thanked us in South Australia for our support in supplying rescue personnel.

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