The New Zealand Defence Force’s work on the island of Ma’uke in the Cook Islands will have a long-lasting impact on the island, as Exercise Tropic Twilight wraps up following a month of work.
Funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, this year’s exercise involves more than 30 personnel from the New Zealand Army’s 25 Engineer Support Squadron, 2 Engineer Regiment supported by a medical team and troops from Australia, Fiji, Tonga and Vanuatu.
“It’s a positive feeling as we’ve accomplished all the tasks we set out to do and more,” said Troop Commander Lieutenant Jarrod Wilson ahead of the final flight out of Ma’uke on Monday.
Nineteen tonnes of stores were flown in by Royal New Zealand Air Force C-130J Hercules, with a further 25 tonnes of building supplies shipped to the island.
The team carried out its main tasks of maintenance and improvements on the island’s solar farm, water infrastructure, and school and community halls during the exercise. Ma’uke, about 277km northeast of Rarotonga, has a population of only about 240 and some of that infrastructure needed work.
“We were able to finish these quicker than expected, mainly due to the skill of the people we have here and , that really meant we could get after some extra tasks,” Lieutenant Wilson said.
That included work at the island’s hospital, installing a new solar hot water heater and assembling hospital beds and furniture.
An additional air conditioner was also installed at the solar farm, where overheating battery and inverter rooms were affecting the power supply to the island.
The electricians and plumbers also replaced faulty bore pumps and float switches at the island’s water farm. This will ensure the island has a reliable water supply into the future.
“The work we’ve done on the solar farm and water bores will definitely have an impact on this island over a long time,” Lieutenant Wilson said.
“While it might seem insignificant at this time, it’s the long-term effects, such as protecting the life of the batteries and not wasting water, that will be felt in the longer run.”
The soldiers had also learnt a lot during the exercise as they worked alongside the local experts, he said.
“We didn’t build the water bore system and we didn’t have an understanding of how it operated.
“Our tradespeople had to learn how the system worked, and that meant a lot of time with one person at a pump and another at the switchboard trying to figure out what was happening.”
Working with the soldiers from Australia, Fiji, Tonga and Vanuatu had also proved valuable.
“They learned a little bit about how our Defence Force operates and we learned a little bit about them.
“In the future if we ever have to deploy operationally, we have a baseline understanding. Our section commanders had to learn how to lead personnel from different countries – they sometimes have to overcome a language barrier or sometimes a different skill set, which is great for them as well.”
Handover and completion ceremonies were held last week, where locals were shown the completed work.
Lieutenant Wilson believed the community was happy with the work, and the hospitality shown by the island was incredible.
“It’s like we were born and raised here, and went away and came back. There’s definitely good relationships that have been formed in such a short time between our personnel and the locals.
“This is one of the good parts of doing our job – practising our skills outside of New Zealand but also seeing the gratitude and the lasting impact this has on the community.”
He was also struck by the impact the soldiers had outside of the tasks they had been set.
“The guys were going and playing volleyball with the community after work or us doing a sports morning at the local school. This probably has just as much a positive effect on the children as constructing their walkways.
“It’s been an honour and privilege to do this work not just for Ma’uke, but with Ma’uke.”