Hirepool and Port-A-Loo Provide Relief for a Shaken City

It’s not every day you get asked to provide temporary relief to a city in shock – but that unusual request proved no obstacle for the Canterbury Port-A-Loo team following the Canterbury earthquake.

Port-A-Loo, a subsidiary of Hirepool, one of New Zealand’s premier rental solutions providers, has provided over 600 portable sanitisation units to areas like Avonside, Brooklands and the CBD, with over half going to Kaiapoi, one of the worst-hit areas.

Simon Chamberlain, Port-A-Loo Canterbury Manager, says the demand for a temporary restroom solution was nothing he had experienced before. “It’s a big deal for us when we are asked to supply 150 for one event,” he exclaims, “so this tipped the scales a little!”

With the quake critically damaging waterways and sewerage systems, particularly in Kaiapoi, the focus has been on repairing the infrastructure under the roads to reinstate the water supply. Damage to household drains has left many families still with no water or sewerage services.

In response, Simon and his team have lined Kaiapoi’s streets with Port-a-Loos to ensure those without sewerage systems are taken care of.

As they gradually begin the process of collecting the portable toilets from areas where they are no longer needed, Simon can’t praise his Canterbury team enough. “You would expect the guys to be tire now that the novelty has worn off, but I haven’t had a single complaint or someone questioning the job that needs doing. They haven’t needed constant directions, have taken initiative, and made my job incredibly easier.”

With the situation still dire in Kaiapoi, the portable toilets will be a fixture for some time in a number of streets. “We aren’t expecting to pick up the Port-a-Loos from Kaiapoi residents for at least another month,” says Simon.