Exercise Manaki, Volunteering at Auckland’s Largest Civil Defence Exercise

Last week, I had the opportunity to participate in Exercise Manaaki, Auckland’s largest civil defence welfare exercise to date. As a volunteer with the New Zealand Red Cross Disaster Welfare and Support Team (DWST), I was stationed at the CBD Civil Defence Centre (CDC) for the duration of the day-long exercise.

Exercise Manaaki brought together DWST members and partner agencies from across the North Island, offering a rare chance to work alongside each other in a simulated large-scale emergency. The focus was on testing Auckland’s emergency welfare systems, including the activation and running of CDCs — key hubs that support communities during times of crisis. For us on the ground, the exercise gave life to what is often only discussed in training rooms: coordinating welfare services, providing psychological first aid, managing logistics, and ensuring that displaced people have the support they need.

But the learning did not stop there. Following the main exercise, I joined an additional two-day DWST training weekend in Henderson Valley. This was a hands-on opportunity to strengthen team bonds and refresh essential skills. From erecting emergency response air shelters, to diving into media training, roles and responsibilities, and welfare-specific modules, the weekend reinforced the importance of flexibility, clear communication, and teamwork in high-pressure environments.

It was great to see the breadth of skills and commitment that DWST members bring, and the collective focus on putting communities at the centre of what we do. Exercises like Manaaki remind us that while we hope disasters never come, preparedness is not just about plans on paper, but about people who are ready to step up when it matters most.