Historical Disasters By Region
Tsunami
•1868 - a 6-metre tsunami from Chile washes into the huts of a Māori village on the north-west coast of the main island. People rush to higher ground before the much higher second wave arrives 10 minutes later. The entire village, and several other houses, huts and boats are totally destroyed, and one person drowned.
•1924 - 6-metre waves from Chile pound the Chatham Islands.
•1960 - a tsunami from a huge earthquake in Chile affects the whole Pacific, including a 3-4m wave on the Chatham Islands.
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Storms
•1980 - ten people are evacuated during a storm in March.
•1985 - a vicious storm on the Chatham Islands destroys the Royal Albatross nesting habitat.
Non-natural Disasters
•1867 - an epidemic of measles kills many Moriori and Taranaki Māori on the Chatham Islands.
•1918/19 - Spanish flu, our worst disaster, kills over 8,000 New Zealanders.
•1957/58 - Asian flu comes in two waves, and affects about 70-80% of the population, though few people die.
•1968/69 - the Hong Kong flu reaches New Zealand. As it occurs mainly during the Christmas holidays, it does not spread as fast amongst schoolchildren and their families.
•2007 - a fire burns around 60 hectares of the 422.9 hectare Wharekauri (Greenswamp) Conservation Area in the northern Chatham Islands. It forms part of the extensive peat swamp system of the northern Chatham Islands and is one of New Zealand’s best examples of peat swamps.
•2009 - human cases of non-seasonal influenza A (H1N1) 'swine flu' resulting from human to human transmission are identified in Mexico in April, with subsequent spread to many other countries, including New Zealand. All of New Zealand’s cases have recently returned from travel in affected areas or are close contacts of cases. New Zealand continues its efforts to contain the influenza A (H1N1) swine flu virus and prevent community transmission. By late May case numbers in New Zealand remain stable, but the number of overseas cases being notified to the World Health Organisation continues to increase.