All may not be as it seems in the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle…

The BFD presents a caller on NewstalkZB:

NewstalkZB Caller Brent Warns Looters ‘Bloody Horrific’ in Eskdale & 1,400 Still Missing, 21 Feb 23

READ HERE: The BFD | NewstalkZB Caller Brent Warns Looters ‘Bloody Horrific’ in Eskdale & 1,400 Still Missing, 21 Feb 23

And from a tip-off by Jon Eisen, this FB post which a “volunteer censor” deemed to be misinformation (make your own mind up):

Karen Johnston

I’ve just heard a voice recording. Survivor account. Key points:

The death toll is HIGH. Hospital morgue full. Extra Morgue on wharf, 100s of bodies. The army is managing that and the info is classified. The soldier with 20 plus years sercice stated it was worse than Afghanistan. Many recovered bodies pose complex id issues due to forestry slash damage and decomposition. Dental records reqd. RSV orchard workers – 50 from one pacific Island all missing. No dental records for them. The foresety crew are searching inland, police, search and rescue are searching the coast line.
The locals are sleeping with shot guns. It’s a war zone.
No police or army are helping with the clean up. Locals helping locals. Fatigue is becoming overwhelming. Emotional exhaustion and heartbreak evident everywhere. Everyone knows atleast 11 people who are missing or dead, personally. The people in town are safer than the people in the country. Rural people live in fear. Furnishings needed for homes that have been cleaned out but lost the furniture.

Karen Johnston – (This has now been reported as false… | Facebook

Martin comments: This disaster resonates with me as having many parallels with the Christchurch earthquakes. But one of my most vivid memories was of the rapid military response. I was in the extraordinary position of living right next to the NZ Army base of operations with trucks and helicopters coming and going constantly. The army were a prime factor in the early stages of the recovery and cleanup op, and that is probably because (In one of the many “coincidences” at play) the combined military forces were engaged in a major disaster relief exercise just outside Christchurch when the quake hit.

So I guess the question is, why are the military seemingly not so heavily engaged in the Gabrielle disaster recovery? Or are they? We’d love to know the truth!

Also in contrast is the Police response. In Christchurch we had the central city cordoned and heavily patrolled, and looting in the Red Zone was minimised by regular patrols and a security presence.

And then there’s the discrepancy in the missing and deceased figures.

What’s going on here? Are we being told the facts or are we being misled?