Exercise Taurus and Operation Waiheke

Lessons learned during a simulation exercise and a response to a suspected outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.

In May/April 2005 the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry tested its response preparedness for leading a whole of Government response, based around a scenario of a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the Manawatu. The response involved implementing MAF's National Response Centre and teams around disease management, trade management, communications and media oversight. The simulation involved a number of government agencies and Ministers working in accordance with New Zealand's crisis management model ('the DESC system').

Exercise Taurus had three elements:

  • Week one of the disease outbreak, testing field operations and the systems at the Exotic Disease Response Centre in Wallaceville, Upper Hutt (14-18 March)
  • Day one of the disease outbreak, testing head office and whole-of-government systems at the National Crisis Management Centre located in the Beehive basement, Parliament Buildings, Wellington (11-12 April)
  • Testing of the throughput capacity of an aircurtain incinerator as a means of carcase disposal (10-14 April)

On 10 May 2005, the Prime Minister received a letter claiming FMD virus had been deliberately released on Waiheke Island. While this later proved to be a hoax, the threat was taken seriously MAF's emergency response management systems under the name Operation Waiheke.

The report, Lessons Learnt Link to PDF document (273 KB) during a simulation exercise and a response to a suspected outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, identifies 19 recommendations to MAF to continue to enhance its preparedness for, and ability to respond to, a major exotic disease outbreak such as FMD, as part of MAF's ongoing work programme.

Page last updated: 30 April 2008