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Speaker 1: Joining us live on the line right now is the

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Speaker 1: Saint John Ambulance Director of Ambulance Services, Craig Garaway. Good

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Speaker 1: morning to you, Craig.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie. How are you?

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Speaker 1: Oh, not too bad? I'm probably better than you are

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Speaker 1: At the moment. I would imagine that it's been all

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Speaker 1: hands on deck for our frontline emergency services, including you guys.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, it has been pretty much three weeks NonStop

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Speaker 2: hands on deck. And just want to thank all of

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Speaker 2: our staff, volunteers, our paramedics, behind the scenes, corporate staff

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Speaker 2: for the great work they've done over the last three weeks.

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Speaker 2: And obviously we're watching this weather pass over at the

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Speaker 2: moment and we're just sort of in the wait and

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Speaker 2: see what happens in Catherine today. But hopefully that all

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Speaker 2: turns out really positive for us.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, we are certainly all hoping that that is the case.

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Speaker 1: We spoke to the mayor jo Anna Holden a bit

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Speaker 1: earlier this morning. She said they're feeling a little more positive,

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Speaker 1: but just all holding their breaths until Wednesday.

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Speaker 2: Yes, everyone's holding their breath, but a little bit more

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Speaker 2: positive news with the rainfall out the Catron area for

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Speaker 2: let's see what comes out of that.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, and look, I'll take our listeners through some of

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Speaker 1: those warnings as well that have come out over the

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Speaker 1: last couple of minutes. But Craig, how have things been

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Speaker 1: tracking for you guys with your ex tropical cyclone norell

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Speaker 1: response over the weekends.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, we've had staff. We had to fly staff

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Speaker 2: into Nullen Boy for the first part of it when

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Speaker 2: that storm came through on Saturday night. We've also had

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Speaker 2: additional staff and resourcing in Catherine for the expected flood

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Speaker 2: that was coming to Catherine. So we're very well planned

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Speaker 2: and we're in a staging point at the moment. We're

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Speaker 2: very comfortable with everything we've got in place. We had

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Speaker 2: a practice run obviously with the first bit of flooding there,

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Speaker 2: so really well planned at the moment, and we'll just

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Speaker 2: wait and see it happen over the next couple of days.

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Speaker 2: But you know, obviously we've had paramedics put their hand up,

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Speaker 2: everyone in our organizations put their hand up, all their

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Speaker 2: volunteers to go to Catherine and Nullen Boy to support

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Speaker 2: those regions while we try and get through this weather event.

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Speaker 1: How wonderful. I love the way that all of our

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Speaker 1: frontline surfaces services are all too ready to get out

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Speaker 1: there and help each other.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, and that was probably really evident. On Saturday night,

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Speaker 2: we had an incident in Nullboy in Nakala, one of

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Speaker 2: the outstations there where we had some serious medical issues

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Speaker 2: going on out there, and unfortunately the wind had blown

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Speaker 2: large trees across the road. So look, the police, fire

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Speaker 2: and emergency services there were very quick to react and

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Speaker 2: get those trees cut out of our way so we

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Speaker 2: could get into that community, obviously in very poor weather conditions.

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Speaker 2: So really like to thank those guys for the work

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Speaker 2: they did on Saturday night to help obviously the residents

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Speaker 2: of Vitala and our paramed's out.

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Speaker 1: That is good to hear. And so at this point

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Speaker 1: in time, you were obviously able to get in there

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Speaker 1: and see that patient. How are they tracking?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look they're tracking. Well, we had two patients at

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Speaker 2: the same time in there, so it was good to

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Speaker 2: be able to get in there and get those patients

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Speaker 2: back into your hospital. Sorry you carl A nuther Boy Hospital,

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Speaker 2: but yeah, look go make a full recovery. But it

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Speaker 2: was just obviously complex trying to get in there with

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Speaker 2: all the trees down on the road.

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Speaker 1: Going in Craig, I understand. I mean throughout all the

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Speaker 1: tough times that we've been having, well, a couple more

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Speaker 1: babies delivered by the sounds of a Yeah.

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Speaker 2: Look, we had two actually pretty close by actually Saturday

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Speaker 2: night at ten forty five, and then four hours later

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Speaker 2: another one, both in the city Larakia and the city area,

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Speaker 2: thirty three year old female and a twenty nine year

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Speaker 2: old female giving birth, one in the back of the

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Speaker 2: ambulance and one at home. So look, it was really

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Speaker 2: fantastic that these babies were obviously born healthy and taken

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Speaker 2: in the hospital, obviously them on the way around to

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Speaker 2: get to hospital. And one of those deliveries excuse me, Katie,

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Speaker 2: one of those deliveries was from one of our new

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Speaker 2: intern student paramedics, which was a great experience for them

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Speaker 2: in the first you know, part of their career with

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Speaker 2: our organization.

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Speaker 1: Oh how wonderful, What an experience to have.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look it was, and they're very early on in

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Speaker 2: their career, first year, and obviously had the support of

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Speaker 2: a qualified paramedic and intensive care paramite with them, and

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Speaker 2: obviously supported mum and bub during that period of birth.

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Speaker 2: And I probably won't forget that case I'd say for

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Speaker 2: the rest of their life.

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Speaker 1: Oh how wonderful and so pleased to hear that both

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Speaker 1: of those babies born safely and all. Okay, Craig, it's

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Speaker 1: no doubt been a busy time for you guys. It's

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Speaker 1: going to continue to be, you know, like you've touched on,

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Speaker 1: You've obviously had extras, go down to Catherine and just

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Speaker 1: really juggling it all. Let's hope that this bloody weather

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Speaker 1: calms down.

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Speaker 2: Hey, yeah, it's been a pretty amazing wet season, one

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Speaker 2: of the biggest of any of fifty years, and it's

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Speaker 2: the biggest I've ever seen. And the weather just keeps coming,

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Speaker 2: so hopefully it does go away. I really like to

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Speaker 2: thank all thoseline workers, the health workers, police, fire moons,

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Speaker 2: everyone that's out there giving up the last three weekends

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Speaker 2: to help the community through this. It's an amazing effort

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Speaker 2: and they all deserve a bit of a pad on

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Speaker 2: the back and of a rest at the end.

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Speaker 1: You are spot on. I think if you see an

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Speaker 1: emergency service a frontline worker today, give them a pad

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Speaker 1: on the back and say thank you for all the efforts,

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Speaker 1: because honestly, it's been a tough time.

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Speaker 2: For everybody it has.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, Craig Garaway, thank you so much for having a

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Speaker 1: chat with us this morning. I really appreciate your time.

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Speaker 1: You probably haven't slept for three weeks.

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Speaker 2: Mate, A lot of us haven't slept. It's been a

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Speaker 2: long three weeks, so looking forward to a couple of

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Speaker 2: days off. I think when this weather flies over.

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Speaker 1: I bet, I bet you are. Craig Garraway, thank you,

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Speaker 1: good to talk to you.

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Speaker 2: Take care kay, you too.