ShakeOut 2025: One in seven New Zealanders take part in our national earthquake drill
It’s official – one in seven people signed up for this year’s ShakeOut: New Zealand’s national earthquake drill and tsunami hīkoi (evacuation).
Shakeout is a powerful reminder that we live in a beautiful, but hazardous, country. Earthquakes, tsunami and floods can strike with minimal warning. That’s why it’s so important that we all take part in Shakeout - a national day of action to prepare for a major natural disaster.
This year’s count of 765,000 sign-ups is the third-largest in more than a decade, but the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says there’s no room for complacency.
“This year’s ShakeOut more than delivered on our expectations, with more than three-quarters of a million people taking part,” John Price, NEMA’s Director of Civil Defence Emergency Management said.
“We’ve crunched the numbers and that’s about one in every seven people in Aotearoa New Zealand – that’s a huge effort.
“However, we’d urge everyone to remember that when a major emergency happens, it’ll affect everyone.
“If you’re among the one in seven, then that’s fantastic – keep building on that muscle memory. But if you aren’t, maybe take some time this week to make up for it.
“Check your supplies of food, water and essentials, and have a ‘prep talk’ with your family about what you’d do and where you’d meet up if there’s an emergency.
“Also, if you live, work or hang out near the coast, check to see if you’re in a tsunami zone and where you’d evacuate if need be.”
John Price says that last week’s severe weather and the Kamchatka earthquake and tsunami on 30 July 2025 is a stark reminder that preparedness is really important.
NEMA’s Annual Preparedness Survey showed a 10-15% uptick in household preparedness activity after a major event like the Canterbury quakes or Cyclone Gabrielle – but decreases after that.
“Last week’s severe weather events are a stark reminder that it’s better to prepare for an emergency before one happens, instead of reacting afterwards”, John Price said.
“The uptick we’ve seen in ShakeOut registrations year-on-year is a very good sign, but we all need to take a more proactive approach to emergency preparedness as being ready today means being safer tomorrow.”
ShakeOut 2025 by the numbers
- 2025 was NEMA’s third-largest ShakeOut drill on record, with 765,000 signups.
- The largest-ever ShakeOut was the very first one, back in 2012 with 1.34 million registrations, followed by ShakeOut 2019, with 797,000 registrations.
- The top-performing region was Gisborne, with almost one third of their population signed up to take part in the drill:
|
Region |
% Signed Up |
Participants |
Businesses |
Schools |
Households |
|
Gisborne |
32% |
16,734 |
103 |
72 |
354 |
|
Manawatu - Whanganui |
21% |
55,838 |
115 |
203 |
325 |
|
West Coast |
21% |
6,893 |
34 |
47 |
74 |
|
Wellington |
16% |
85,723 |
302 |
311 |
689 |
|
Marlborough |
14% |
7,486 |
39 |
37 |
94 |
|
Southland |
14% |
14,159 |
50 |
79 |
99 |
|
Bay of Plenty |
13% |
47,526 |
146 |
207 |
427 |
|
Taranaki |
12% |
15,058 |
53 |
91 |
185 |
|
Hawke's Bay |
11% |
20,204 |
98 |
121 |
225 |
|
Nelson Tasman |
11% |
12,488 |
39 |
62 |
147 |
|
Otago |
11% |
27,486 |
105 |
174 |
308 |
|
Auckland |
9% |
158,369 |
293 |
674 |
1,035 |
|
Canterbury |
9% |
61,341 |
133 |
208 |
615 |
|
Waikato |
9% |
49,226 |
156 |
265 |
689 |
|
Northland |
7% |
13,997 |
32 |
100 |
145 |
|
Chatham Islands |
2% |
18 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
NEMA’s getready.govt.nz website has the information you need to get started, including what you’ll need to prepare and how to make a plan for your household.
Published: Nov 3, 2025, 3:45 PM