Fire and Emergency (FENZ) is launching an independent investigation into how two firefighters died and two were injured while responding to a flood event in Auckland's Muriwai during Cyclone Gabrielle.
On February 13, FENZ responded to a call to investigate flooding at a house on Motuara Road.
Firefighters Craig Stevens and Dave van Zwanenberg became caught in a slip while investigating the flooding. Van Zwanenberg's body was recovered a few days later and Stevens died in hospital.
In a statement on Thursday, FENZ chief executive Kerry Gregory said given the enormity of the event, the independent inquiry was justified.
"We are committed to looking for opportunities for continuous improvement and are looking to minimise the risk of such catastrophic harm being repeated in the future," Gregory said.
He said the investigation was being independently conducted by lead investigator Paul McGill and Specialist Incident Cause Analysis Method (ICAM) health and safety investigator Andy Evans.
Gregory said FENZ is a close whanāu and Stevens and van Zwanenberg's deaths have been an awful reminder of the risks firefighters can be exposed to every day.
"We will continue to work closely with those impacted," he said.
Gregory said investigators would finalise the details of the investigation process.
An operational review would also be conducted into FENZ's response to the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle and the Auckland floods.
"This is in addition to our contribution to the Auckland Mayor's enquiry into the Auckland flooding event," Gregory said.
FENZ said in the statement on Thursday it will be making no further comment at this stage.
