Valentine's Day v Cyclone Gabrielle: Will love conquer all?

Monday, 13 February 2023

A drive through surface flooding in Matarangi, Coromandel, on Monday shows the effects of the approaching Cyclone Gabrielle.

Cyclone Gabrielle is making its way down Aotearoa, downing trees, cutting off power and creating havoc across the North Island.

The heavy rain and winds of Monday are forecast to continue, with MetService predicting “damaging gusts” on Tuesday of up to 130kph.

But there’s one thing Cyclone Gabrielle won’t stop: Valentine’s Day.

Valentine’s Day – the international day to show your appreciation and adoration for your significant other, through material items and soppy Instagram posts – falls on February 14, day two of Cyclone Gabrielle.

* Cyclone Gabrielle to reach closest point to Auckland on Monday, tracking southeast

Despite dire conditions, florists are under the pump to get orders fulfilled.

* Cyclone Gabrielle centre nears, all North Island under warning

Will love conquer all, including Cyclone Gabrielle?

Cyclone or no cyclone, florists Stuff talked to were fulfilling orders, and were attempting to get deliveries to loved up Aucklanders rain, hail or shine.

This day isn’t just important to (some) couples, but the flower industry as a whole, with a staff member from Flowers after Hours in Auckland’s Parnell describing it as “the make or break of a successful year”.

“It’s a shame because it’s a huge day for the floristry industry, and everything has been a lot of challenging,” the staff member said, adding that the last three years had also been a challenge due to Covid-19.

Rachel Peterson and her daughter Molly Love have had to miss Valentine’s Day all together this year, due to the constant natural disasters.

“We are in a better position in terms of being able to fulfil orders because we deliver ourselves, but a lot of couriers are not operating which has been a challenge for most florists.”

She said Flowers after Hours hadn’t had any cancellations, but had been asking customers if they could accept their Valentine’s Day delivery a day early.

The Wild Bunch, in Remuera, said they were going to have to “play it by ear” and had also asked customers if they would consider delaying their deliveries as the team works to fill “hundreds” of orders.

Misty Osbourne said it felt good to be able to finally open on Valentine’s Day.

“It’s hard, because we deliver Auckland-wide and couriers are not working,” the staff member said.

“People will just have to be patient, that’s all we can ask.”

Green Bay Flowers and Gifts florist in West Auckland, one of the areas worst hit by January’s floods, have been forced to act as Cupid themselves and personally deliver orders.

Valentine’s Day is a huge day for florists, and a cyclone wasn’t going to stop flower deliveries.

“We’re only accepting orders we can deliver, and we’ve had to cancel orders,” the florist said.

Couriers across Auckland scaled back their services on Monday, with New Zealand Couriers closing multiple branches, and NZ Post “temporarily suspended in Northland and Coromandel”.

Misty Osbourne’s shop is a shipping container on the side of SH16, and was founded by her grandmother 20 years ago.

However, Urgent Couriers told Stuff they were “business as usual”.

Made With Love, a personalised giftbox service in Orewa, is having to skip Valentine’s Day all together, as the shop recovered from the January floods.

“We lost all the stock on the bottom shelves, the counter’s wood was swollen with water and we had to get industrial cleaners in,” Rachel Peterson said, who owns the businesses alongside her daughter, Molly Love.

Made with Love were ready to rip into Valentine’s Day after a successful Christmas, but the severe weather had ruined their chances this year.

On Tuesday, Stuff talked to florist Misty Osbourn, who feared the flooding around Kumeū would ruin her whānau’s flower business on the busiest day of the year.

“Because of the last flooding, we were worried that it would come right in again,” she said.

The shop – a container on the side of State Highway 16 – was founded by Osbourne’s grandmother 20 years ago.

Auckland’s last wave of flooding saturated the shop, and the water from Cyclone Gabrielle reached the stairs before it receded.

Osbourne said it felt good to be able to finally open on Valentine's Day.

Chris Martin, the owner and director of Commercial Bay restaurant Ahi, said his restaurant was “rated for extreme weather conditions”, but safety was the first consideration.

“With that said, should a currently unforeseen danger arise, we'll immediately cease operations with safety of our guests and team as priority number one,” Martin said.

“We've got very strong demand for those wanting a great meal to show off to their Valentine, which may serve as a respite during the chaos of the last few days. While we've had a small number of cancellations, we remain fully booked with each cancellation being reasonably quickly filled.”