It’s really tough not to like New Zealand’s Prime Minister.

Jacinda Ardern has overseen one of the most effective coronavirus responses in the world, and she did so without coming across as overly autocratic.

The New York Times has a great article on how she managed to do that, covering her mixture of “straight talk and mom jokes”, but let’s just focus on what happened during a live TV interview this morning.

Talking to Ryan Bridge, a host for Newshub’s AM Show, Ardern kept her cool and was unflappable in the face of a 5,6 magnitude earthquake.

It was originally reported as a 5,9 magnitude earthquake, but has been revised down.

The Guardian reports that the quake “hit 30 km north-west of Levin, a town about an hour’s drive north from the capital, at a depth of 37 km”.

Given that New Zealand has had some tragic and deadly earthquakes in recent times (185 people died in 2011’s Christchurch earthquake), her reaction is all the more impressive:

They let their presenters grow man buns? Not sure I’m on board with that.

Kiwis are known for being pragmatic people, and some of the reactions to the latest quake bear testament to that.

Here’s the NZ Herald:

Kāpiti News editor David Haxton, his wife and two kids quickly gathered together in the middle of their Raumati Beach house as the shaking gripped the house.

“The cat bolted, thankfully there was no damage or worse, but it certainly raised the heart rate of everyone,” he said…

Frank Tylor, who has owned the popular Waitarere Beach Four Square for more than 20 years, was in a unique position to judge earthquakes, having been on holiday in Christchurch when the big one hit in 2011.

He still remembers stepping outside to see a big concrete wave during the Christchurch earthquake, so the Levin quake was a little rattle in comparison.

“I lost a bottle of mayonaise off the shelf. That’s about it,” he said.

“It wasn’t a problem.”

Unflappable.

On with their day, and ours.

[sources:guardian&nzherald]