Northland flooding: Showers possible for region, but worst is over
Monday, 20 July 2020
A weather front that brought severe downpours and major flooding to parts of the upper North Island has moved on, with only a few showers expected for the region on Monday.
Northland is in clean-up mode following a deluge of rain on Friday and Saturday that flooded homes and damaged roads.
The rainfall was described as a “once in a 500-year rainfall event”, and Murray Soljak, spokesman for the Northland Civil Defence Emergency Management group, said fixing the roads would be “extensive and expensive”.
On Monday, a spokeswoman for MetService said the region would experience mostly cloudy conditions.
**READ MORE:
* Flooding, closed roads, separate East Coast family as rain continues to pummel region
* Heavy rain on the way for Northland as clean-up continues
* Worst of the storms over, but Northlanders should still expect more rain
**
Most areas would get a period of showers - but only a few were expected, she said.
Civil Defence Northland said Moerewa was one of the locations most affected by the rain.
“Over the weekend, CDEM and Far North District Council teams have carried out rapid assessments of more than 100 properties, checking on both the welfare of residents, and the impact on the homes and wastewater disposal systems.
“With a few properties still to be visited, the information gathered will ensure that the right forms of assistance are provided.”
Civil Defence Minister Peeni Henare visited the region on Sunday to talk to residents, community members, iwi leaders, and council staff.
“It is a challenging time for the community, and they have responded well and supported each other during this tough time,” Henare told Stuff.
“While flood waters have mostly receded the clean-up will take some time.”
Henare said he wanted to acknowledge community leaders, civil defence, emergency services and local council for their efforts to address the situation quickly.
“ I have met with mayors of impacted areas who are confident that their teams have managed this weather event well.
“Damage assessments are still underway so it is too early to know cost of this weather event. We will stay in contact with local councils to see what assistance they may need once the full impact is known.”
Welfare support is available through the Ministry for Social Development and civil defence, he said.
Soljak said some locals would be affected by the flood for some time, but they had really pulled together.
“Overall, the region did really, really well,” he said.
“By and large people have pulled together and it’s clear what needs to be done from here and it’s just a matter of working through it.”
Monday would see the restoration of roads and inspections of damaged properties continue, Soljak said.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand responded to more than 200 weather-related incidents in Northland between 6pm Friday and 5.30am Saturday. The majority of the call-outs were due to flooding in the Northland and wider Whangārei areas.
A police spokeswoman said a handful of homes in Whangārei and Paihia were evacuated, including one in Kensington where a person and their cat were taken to safety.
Two people in the far north area of Tāheke were also caught in the storm’s crossfire and had to be rescued after they became trapped in their vehicle in the early hours of Saturday morning.
WATER TREATMENT PLANT REOPENS
Storm debris and silt damaged Paihia Water Treatment Plant, which saw households and businesses from Waitangi to Opua urged to reduce water consumption while repairs were made.
The plant reopened on Sunday, following provisional repairs overnight.
Far North District Council infrastructure and asset management general manager Andy Finch said the priority now was to recharge storage reservoirs to ensure backup supplies were available.
Soljak said residents were asked to only use water for essential reasons for the next three days to a week so workers can work through lost production.
NORTHLAND ROADS REOPEN
On Monday, the New Zealand Transport Agency said most of Northland’s state highway network had reopened, except State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge.
This stretch of road is expected to be closed for “several days”.
“Please drive with extra care and allow extra time today.”