Cyclone Gabrielle relief funding

Mayoral relief fund

** UPDATE: Applications have closed for the Far North District Council Mayoral Relief Fund. If you have already lodged an application and want to check on its status, please email recoverymanager@fndc.govt.nz

Far North Kahika (Mayor) Moko Tepania has established a Mayoral relief fund to assist Far North individuals, groups, community organisations and small businesses affected by Cyclone Gabrielle.

The fund is financed through Government contributions and donations from individuals and groups.

Anyone wishing to donate to the fund can make payments online or at any ASB Bank branch by quoting account number 12 3244 0022509 04 with reference to ‘MRF’ and ‘Gabrielle’. 

The aim of the fund is to provide one-off financial assistance to anyone in the Far North experiencing serious hardship because of Cyclone Gabrielle.

The Mayoral Relief Fund provides assistance for those unable to access other funding, such as through private insurance or Ministry of Social Development (MSD) Civil Defence Payments. Details and links for these and other funds are provided below. 

Sources of assistance for Cyclone Gabrielle are:

Mayoral relief fund for Cyclone Gabrielle

Applications have closed for the Far North District Council Mayoral Relief Fund.  If you have already lodged an application and want to check on its status, please email recoverymanager@fndc.govt.nz

Cyclone business support grants

$25 million to help businesses meet immediate costs, further assist with clean-up and boost business support and advice services. This is a part of the $50 million emergency package agreed by Cabinet on Monday 20 February.

  • Initial grants up to a maximum of $40,000 per business, to be distributed by local organisations in affected regions.
  • Support for Employers and Manufacturers’ Association to extend the reach of its employer helpline.
  • Regional Business Partners funding boosted to increase the amount of business advice they can offer.
  • Government to provide more support once further assessments made
  • The agencies distributing the business support grants will be:
    • NorthlandInc
    • Auckland Business Chamber
    • Toi Economic Development Agency
    • Thames Coromandel District Council
    • Trust Tairāwhiti
    • Hawkes Bay Chamber of Commerce
    • Tararua District Council

More information on the business support is available here.

 

Cyclone Gabrielle - Welfare Support Grant

The Cyclone Gabrielle Welfare Support Grant is a government fund administered by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). This grant is to reimburse certain emergency costs that have already been incurred by marae, iwi, and recognised community organisations to care for people affected, displaced, or isolated during the state of national emergency.

This grant recognises that organisations have used their own resources to fund immediate responses to Cyclone Gabrielle. It provides a faster alternative to the normal process of seeking reimbursement through local authorities for emergency response costs.  

Grants are usually capped at $40,000, but organisations may be able to make a further application after discussing their circumstances with NEMA.

Applicants will need to meet eligibility criteria and conditions to receive funding. You can apply for the grant here: Cyclone Gabrielle - Welfare Support Grant » National Emergency Management Agency (civildefence.govt.nz)

Māori recovery package - Te Arawhiti Office for Māori Crown Relations

A $15 million short-term relief package to support Māori communities devastated by Cyclone Gabrielle and help accelerate their recovery.

The package will support a range of efforts including staffing for marae to undertake response and recovery activities, purchase equipment needed for the clean-up, purchase of replacement equipment and storage for food and taonga and support planning and co-ordination efforts. The package includes:

  • $9m distributed through Te Puni Kōkiri to support response efforts in Māori communities
  • $3m distributed through Whānau Ora to fund Commissioning Agencies
  • $3m distributed through Te Arawhiti.

Further details on how funds will be distributed will be available on the Te Puni Kōkiri and Te Arawhiti website.

 

Private Insurance

The applicant should contact their insurer to see whether their situation is covered or not.  

 

Other funding previously announced