The View From Level 3

Co-ops respond to the Feb 22nd Christchurch earthquake

Posted by Ramsey Margolis on 23 February 2011 | 20 Comments

Tags:

This page will be updated as news and information comes in.
Subscribe via RSS to get updates.
For high resolution copies of photos send an email

Monday 2 May
3.45pm Piko is back. I am happy to let you all know that we are back in business! We managed to lease a free standing building at 248 Stanmore Rd.

It used to be a video store and had been empty since December, it is very spacious and has plenty of car parks -- and it is not far from our original site, only two intersections!

It was a lot of work to transform it from carpeted video store to organic shop. How great to be a cooperative, it was so good to have a good team.

We did a lot of the work ourselves painting, sanding, cleaning – we even built a wall. So now we are up and tradin, so next time you are in Christchurch come and check it out.

Thanks for sending all those links, it is very good to know people elsewhere care.

Tuesday 22 March
7.52am Up to 150 tonnes of Waikato-produced dairy product may have been ruined in the Japanese earthquake, according to Paul McGilvary, Chief Executive of Tatua Cooperative Dairy Co.

The cooperative is waiting for access to a Yokohama warehouse where the product is stored. “I’m not sure how badly damaged the warehouse is, because I can't see from the photographs, but bags of product have been thrown off  their pallets,’ McGilvary said.

The Japanese subsidiary of the Waikato-based dairy co-op has been allowed back into its Tokyo office following the earthquake. No staff were injured, but the homes of two were damaged.

Wednesday 16 March
11.23am Immediately after the earthquake, Alister Lawrence, Chief Executive of the plumbers’ cooperative NZPM Group, went to Christchurch to determine where and how the cooperative can best help their members, staff and the community. While there, he got behind the tongs at the co-op’s daily in-branch barbeques, which proved to be a great support for those on the ground.

Two pallets of water, one for each branch, and supplies of muesli bars were dispatched, and all members were contacted by a Plumbing World employee who offered assistance in whatever capacity they could provide. Three additional staff from outside Christchurch will be working at Plumbing World’s Brisbane Street and Papanui branches until further notice.

Lower North Island regional manager Corrie James has been sent to Christchurch as Support Coordinator, and representatives of Plumbing World’s Senior Leadership Team will continue to visit every week for as long as the need remains. James said, “I am currently reviewing customer feedback in order to help us provide solutions wherever we are able, and the cooperative remains aware of the need to closely watch the physical and emotional state of all staff.”.

Also, a request went out to all contacts for relief accommodation in the South Island – preferably within two hours drive of Christchurch – which can be used as a small time out retreat for staff and customers, and an additional payment was made into all affected staff bank accounts to assist with extraordinary costs.

Tuesday 8 March
4.00pm Mutual insurer AMI reports that all services are available at their Riccarton, Papanui, Hornby, Rangiora and Kaiapoi branches during regular business hours. All other Christchurch branches remain closed.

9.30am Christchurch Council called a halt to the demolition of the Kilmore St building which housed Piko Wholefoods Cooperative after Piko members got in touch with them. “Nobody spoke to us about it at all,” said co-op founder Tineke Witteman, who had been alerted by a text from a friend.

Witteman believe that no lives were lost because the 106-year-old building had been earthquake strengthened five years ago. “It took 29 years to build up, and 25 seconds to knock down,” she said. “It’s just not fair.”

Monday 7 March
11.00am Owner of the Stanmore New World supermarket and Foodstuffs South Island member Ian Wilde said that without the exceptional support of all his staff, the Richmond supermarket would never have been able to reopen so quickly to serve the hard-hit eastern suburbs.

"I want to publicly thank my fantastic staff and customers for their consideration and support at this really difficult time. The staff has been superb - they've been wonderful and I think that although they are all tired, they are constantly buoyed up by the feedback they are receiving daily from our customers. That's a reward for them, and for all of us. Every one of the staff had a good reason not to be there for the clean up," Wilde said, "but they all arrived, and everyone worked extremely hard. It was brilliant."

There was no damage to the building structure and interior damage was minimal. "We were just very, very lucky that the damage was so slight. We were able to evacuate the building, get all the shoppers and staff into the car park." Ceiling tiles had fallen in the supermarket, and "everything fell off the shelves," he said.

There was no power for two days, but even in the dark the staff worked to clear the debris. "We've been extremely busy. Water, canned foods, pasta, biscuits - all those were among the sought after items when we re-opened."

Now fully stocked, the supermarket is virtually back to normal. A contractor has scrubbed the car park at night to remove as much of the silt and dust as possible.

5.30am The New Zealand Herald reports that specially trained staff from Fonterra Cooperative Group have joined the recovery effort in Christchurch city centre. The co-op has 160 employees in its emergency response team, and according to team leader Kevin Lockley, they come from a wide variety of backgrounds: military, navy, fire service, ambulance service, and search and rescue. "We've got 'em all," Lockley said.

The team had been on standby from day one and since Tuesday last week had been working under the Civil Defence umbrella. Two teams of 12 had pitched their tents in a park and been out checking buildings, rubble and escorting structural engineers. "We weren't reliant on the community for services, we come completely independent as a team to live, eat and look after ourselves," Lockley said.

The biggest event that Fonterra's emergency response team had been involved with, "it just looks like someone's dropped a bomb on the place," said Lockley. "Hard to describe really, it's in pieces."

Friday 4 March
10.17am Silver Fern Farms announced that it will be donating the equivalent value of the Beef + Lamb New Zealand and Deer Industry New Zealand levies on all sheep, beef and deer processed during the week commencing 14th March 2011 to the New Zealand Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Appeal.

While the cooperative had already put in place a number of initiatives to support the relief effort in the wake of the tragedy, including providing access to fresh water and equipment from its processing sites and donating meat supplies to the Farmy Army and the Salvation Army, Chief Executive Keith Cooper said that the cooperative had been overwhelmed by messages of concern from its members and wanted to step up the company's response on their behalf.

"We're pleased we can put in place a simple mechanism whereby our shareholder-suppliers, via their cooperative, effectively make a donation on every head of livestock they process that week." In addition, Silver Fern Farms had also received commitment from customers offshore to match the company's contributions.

"We feel quite humbled by a very genuine desire on the part of both our farmer members and our international customers to help us do more for our colleagues and others in Christchurch facing hardship as a result of the earthquake."

They anticipate that with Beef + Lamb New Zealand and Deer Industry New Zealand also contributing, a total of $300,000 will be raised.

Thursday 3 March
9.30am No-one was hurt at either the CRT Cooperative Farm Centre in Waterloo Road, Christchurch or their offices in Sir William Pickering Drive, but their their offices had a good shake. General Manager, Marketing Nigel Riley reports that "ceiling panels fell down, everything was all over the place upstairs at Sir William Pickering Drive. It looked like someone had thrown a hand grenade and shut the door."

As well as supplying items such as water drums to the army, CRT have sent tents, food chillers, latex gloves, face masks, and their events barbecue trailer to the Federated Farmers Farmy Army as they help clean up the liquefaction. A team of ten from CRT will be going up today from South Canterbury to take part in the cleanup. "This isn't about us," said Nigel, "we're just getting out there and doing what we can to help the community."

Following checks by engineers, the Farm Centre was able to reopen on Monday, and their offices reopened on Tuesday.

Wednesday 2 March
3.30pm The PSIS branch at 19 Main Road, Papanui opens today from 10am to 4pm. All other branches remain closed.

1.00pm Since 25 February, customers passing the checkouts at the nation's New World, PAK'nSAVE and Four Square stores have donated $614,000 for the people of Canterbury, according to Foodstuffs.

In addition to assisting with the Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Appeal, Foodstuffs Auckland is working closely with the Student Volunteer Army in Christchurch to provide much needed resources. Many stores are contributing to individual fundraising events and the head offices of the three Foodstuffs cooperatives around the country are holding fundraising events to contribute to the Earthquake Appeal. Foodstuffs Auckland has committed to matching dollar for dollar the money raised by staff during their lunchtime fundraiser.

"There is still a long way to do down here in Christchurch and every little bit counts, says Foodstuffs NZ Managing Director, Steve Anderson.

10.49am The earthquake relief fund set up by Fonterra Cooperative Group will contribute more than $3m to the Canterbury earthquake relief effort. In the five days since the fund was set up, Fonterra farmer members and staff have donated more than $1m and donations were still coming in.

The cooperative matched the first $1m dollar-for-dollar and will continue to do so, according to Chief Executive Andrew Ferrier. With the $1m pledged by the cooperative last Wednesday, over $3m has been donated so far.

Tuesday 1 March
4.30pm The Southern Cross Health Society team and their office is in turmoil, according to the Ashburton Trading Society website. While everyone is safe, all calls are being diverted to Auckland.

4.20pm Health stores co-op Health 2000+ report that two member stores in the Christchurch CBD remain closed with no access, while the Riccarton store plans to open tomorrow. "The Eastgate Mall store is in a bad way," said co-op chairman Bob McDonald, "but no staff or customers were hurt, thankfully". Five other member stores in the Christchurch area are open having been checked by engineers.

2.06pm With help from the New Zealand Army and the District Health Board, pharmacy wholesale cooperative CDC Pharmaceuticals found, secured and moved to new premises, and were operational yesterday. Their Cashel Street building was "shaken and subject to liquefaction," according to Chief Executive Mike Rhodes, "but thankfully everyone got out safely. It was a huge logistical effort," he said. At least three CDC member pharmacies in the CBD have been totally wrecked and whether or not others may reopen is uncertain.

1.34pm The World Council of Credit Unions is making a donation from its disaster relief fund to the Canterbury Earthquake Relief Fund and the Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions is working with the New Zealand Association of Credit Unions to channel donations from around the world to credit unions in need.

Monday 28 February
6.38pm The Papanui and Riccarton branches of SBS Bank reopened today with rostered staff from all Christchurch branches. All staff are safe and accounted for. Manchester St and Ferrymead branches remain closed until further notice.

9.47am The New Zealand government has launched the official Christchurch Earthquake Appeal out of the Department of Internal Affairs. People around the world now have the possibility of donating towards the recovery effort. It can be found online at www.christchurchearthquakeappeal.govt.nz.

Sunday 27 February
2.30pm With work continuing at the weekend, good progress is being made according to Foodstuffs South Island. Despite heavy demand still at retail stores, suppliers are continuing to meet the demand for essential goods and there are no shortages of fresh product or essential foods and beverages.

All distribution centres reported excellent staff numbers, making all the difference to their ability to supply food. Stanmore St New World reopened on Friday and Moorehouse Pak'nSave reopened midday Saturday, which means that 13 out of 18 stores in the wider Christchurch area are now open.

They are working hard to open Wainoni Pak'nSave this week, South City New World is closed and difficult to access behind the inner city cordon, St Martins and Redcliffs are damaged and were to be assessed by engineers over the weekend, while the building owner of Lyttelton Four Square has yet to assess the damage at this property and advise when it may be operational.

Foodstuffs is supporting the Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Appeal by providing shoppers with the opportunity to donate at the checkouts of New World, Pak'nSave and Four Square stores nationwide. In addition, Foodstuffs Charitable Trust (South Island) will donate $100,000 to help victims of the quake, and the three Foodstuffs cooperatives will match this with a further $100,000. This $200,000 will be used by the Trust to help people affected by the earthquake.

Their update to staff stated: "It is vital we in the cooperative do everything we can to support our members, and through them, the people of Christchurch and the South Island. We expect all staff to be at work and helping with this vital task. We know some of you will have difficult personal situations that you are dealing with and we urge you to discuss these with your manager or health and safety officer to ensure you get the full support that Foodstuffs can offer you."

12.00pm No-one was hurt when the earthquake shook mutual insurer Unimed's Gloucester Street building, according to Chief Executive Dermot Martin. They have now moved into their disaster recovery facility with all systems checked and operational. For the week to come they ask that members who wish to contact them do so by email rather than phone so as not to overload the Christchurch phone network.

Friday 25 February

5.04pm Farmers have been allocated a sector of Christchurch on Saturday 26 Feb as part of the clean up process. Federated Farmers ask farmers to register at the A+P Showgrounds, Curletts Rd between 0630 and 0800.

They acknowledge Silver Fern Farms and Tegel Foods for donating food, NZ Safety for the donation of safety vests and Rabobank for its assistance. CRT Cooperative is supplying five 4x6 tents to assist with accommodation.

1.56pm Silver Fern Farms has made available bulk water from both its Islington and Belfast plants on the outskirts of Christchurch to bring much needed water supplies into the city. With four wells on site, the Belfast plant adds significant additional capacity with an endless supply of potable water available for immediate transportation.

Chief Executive Keith Cooper said that the cooperative had been overwhelmed by messages from members wanting to assist and he was heartened that they could make a meaningful contribution to the relief effort by teaming up with other committed individuals and organisations to provide assistance where and when it really counts.

12.50pm The majority of Mitre 10 and Mitre 10 Mega stores in the Canterbury region are open and have emergency stock arriving daily. The stores open in Christchurch are Beckenham Mitre 10, Upper Riccarton Mitre 10, Bishopdale Mitre 10, Hornby Mitre 10 Mega and Rangiora Mitre 10 Mega.

12.25pm Six Paper Plus stores in Christchurch are closed until further notice, two are open and two scheduled to open during the week commencing 28 Feb. One staff member suffered minor injuries which have been treated.

11.52am Anna Thomson of Canterbury Education Services reports that the CES team are all okay and accounted for as are all of their families. "We are among the very fortunate," she writes. The CES office in Middleton is a significant distance from the city and inner city suburbs where the major damage has occurred. Their building is fully operational and will reopen on Monday 28th February.

11.44am World Travellers Christchurch City is now fully operational in new premises, and has been humbled by the support received from the trade and fellow World Traveller cooperative members.

Owner Larry Lumsden says it's been a surreal and frightening time in Christchurch, but it's been heart-warming to receive such incredible support from so many places, allowing his team to rebuild their operation in less than 72 hours.

"Of course, our first focus is on the welfare of our staff, and they've pulled through remarkably well. We are all keen to regain a sense of normality in our lives, and work can help provide that," said Lumsden.

The World Travellers' board has frozen all management fees and World Travellers Management Services has been working tirelessly alongside Larry to implement the co-op's business continuity plan, liaising with suppliers, ordering stationery and brochure stocks as well as updating websites.

"I will be eternally grateful for the support we've received," says Lumsden. "The daily conference calls with the World Travellers board have helped keep me buoyed, and the co-op's support has meant that we could quickly rebuild our business. It's a tragic time for Christchurch, and we feel we're contributing by getting our business back on track and letting our customers know that we are there for them."

10.05am Financial services cooperative PSIS has put together a special banking package with a number of short-term cash management options for members impacted financially by the earthquake.

All their Christchurch branches are closed until further notice and members are asked to phone 0800 AT PSIS (287 747) 8am to 8pm daily (including weekends) with all enquiries that would otherwise be directed at a branch.

4.12am The New Zealand Association of Credit Unions have been assessing damage to credit unions in the Canterbury region. "We know of two credit unions damaged in Christchurch, but no lives were lost and no injuries sustained," said Henry Lynch, NZACU CEO.

As expected, members of the Christchurch Emergency Credit Union which serves ambulance drivers and emergency medical personnel have been heavily involved in search and rescue efforts in the earthquake's aftermath.

"New Zealand Credit Union South is our second largest member," Lynch said. "NZCUS staff have been arranging emergency cash loans for members affected by the quake and will soon begin an outbound calling programme to each of its 23,864 members to see if further assistance is needed."

Thursday 24 February
5.32pm Mutual insurer AMI reports that all branches in Christchurch city centre are closed, but their branches at Rangiora, Kaiapoi and Hornby remain open. Members should phone 0800 100 200 if they need assistance or to lodge a claim.

4.13pm Silver Fern Farms have made the contents of their Islington reservoir which holds 300,000 litres of water available to the people of Christchurch, according to a report from Federated Farmers.

4.05pm From Foodstuffs South Island, Malcolm Wratt writes, "the best news is that there were no injuries to any of our staff at the co-op or in any of the stores, and only three customers suffered minor injuries."

"Our Distribution Centres were largely unaffected and are fully operational. We are getting excellent support from suppliers and our staff (many of whom have been affected by the tragedy in some way), and the situation is improving hour by hour. The primary problems for us are at retail level with some of our members' stores still closed, and a number may need fairly major repair work."

Further updates on the co-op's stores will be posted on www.foodstuffs-si.co.nz.

4.00pm Chairman of Ravensdown, Bill McLeod, reports that their people in Christchurch are all okay although some have major damage to their homes. While the Ravensdown office in Oxford Terrace in the middle of the city's CBD has some internal damage and has initially been cleared by a structural engineer, the co-op intends to investigate the soundness of the building more thoroughly. Their plant at Hornby is undamaged, Bill said.

"I was actually in the building on the third floor when the quake struck and I can assure you it's not something I would want to experience again. However, having got all our people out safely is something I will be eternally grateful for. We need to be aware, though, that the trauma will take a lot longer to fix than the buildings."

7.10am International Cooperative Alliance Director-General Charles Gould tells the world's cooperatives, "We know that many of you are concerned about the situation in Christchurch, New Zealand, as the scale and impact of the recent earthquake becomes more clear. ... Please keep all of the people in New Zealand in your thoughts as they work through their personal loss."

Wednesday 23 February
4.30pm Fonterra Cooperative Group has donated $1 million to the Red Cross Christchurch earthquake appeal.

At the same time they have launched a Fonterra Earthquake Relief Fund to enable their 10,500 farmer members and 16,000 staff to make personal donations which will be matched $1 for $1 by the cooperative up to a further $1 million.

They are also shipping 1 million litres of water from their Clandeyboye site to schools around Christchurch, and will be delivering UHT milk and bottled water to relief centres in Christchurch.

2.45pm The New Zealand subsidiary of Dutch cooperative Rabobank will be donating $100,000 to the Salvation Army Canterbury earthquake appeal. Their Christchurch office is closed while it is assessed for damage.

Rabobank have also expanded their employee Workplace Giving programme to enable New Zealand and Australia staff to donate to earthquake relief, with contributions being matched by the bank.

1.00pm Foodstuffs are working to ensure that as many of their supermarkets as possible are open with a continuous supply of essential items.

11.50am The Christchurch World Travellers was hit hard by the earthquake hard and was up and running offsite within 24 hours. The World Travellers cooperative put out the following statement on 23 February:

"We at World Travellers are very conscious of the priority in saving lives and livelihoods, and at the same understand that there are people wanting to desperately get in or out of Christchurch. We have organised backup from our co-op shops around the country for travel assistance and updates regarding travel insurance etc can be found on the Christchurch World Travellers website HERE.

"If anyone needs assistance please contact us by first checking the numbers on the site HERE or by phoning 0800 242 5299 or 0800 101 303."

9.05am The building housing Piko Wholefoods Cooperative on the corner of Kilmore and Barbadoes Streets has been badly damaged by the earthquake.

Tuesday 22 February
9.53pm Cooperative commentator Alan Robb writes: "We are both OK after today's quake but our house has suffered much more damage than previously – water through the ground floor from liquefaction, many, many things broken. It will take quite some time to make it habitable again and we will be staying with family while that happens."

4.00pm Rural insurer FMG has a team standing by to assist members affected by the earthquake. If you have major damage or require urgent attention phone 0800 366 466 or email earthquake@fmg.co.nz with a phone number and the best time to contact you.

3.00pm The Interflora Pacific Unit headquarters in Christchurch is closed because of the earthquake and unable to process orders. To send flowers throughout New Zealand and the world, you should contact your Interflora florist directly. The cooperative has members in 15 countries.

12.51pm A 6.3 magnitude earthquake strikes Christchurch.●