More rain for East Coast, Wairoa residents evacuated

Tuesday, 28 February 2023

Surface flooding on Valley Road in the Gisborne suburb of Mangapapa on Tuesday morning.

Wairoa mayor Craig Little says heavy rain has brought “mayhem” to the area, with houses close to inundation and two people forced to be evacuated.

Rain in the already-soaked Gisborne and Hawke's Bay regions had led to surface flooding and evacuations in some areas.

In a social media post, Wairoa District Council said residents should leave their homes if they need to following a “really wet night”.

Little, who was isolating at his farm after testing positive for Covid-19, said two residents had been evacuated after a stop bank failed on a stream.

Flooding at Matokitoki Stream near Nelson Rd in Gisborne on Tuesday morning.

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Meanwhile, all other evacuations had been voluntary, although some houses had come close to being inundated.

Surface flooding on Justin Street in the Gisborne suburb of Mangapapa on Tuesday morning.

'It's just mayhem down here, we do not need any more rain, it needs to go away and give us some time to clean up … it's hard to believe it's summer,' Little said.

The Wairoa area had once again seen surface flooding, but luckily the Wairoa River had not risen to flood levels this time, he said.

Little understood much of the surface flooding in the area was beginning to recede as of midday on Tuesday and rain was forecast to ease in the afternoon.

Civil Defence centres were open at War Memorial Hall, Taihoa Marae and Hinemihi Marae. Whānau have also opened the Mill Pa on Frasertown Road.

On Tuesday afternoon, MetService lifted a heavy rain warning which was in place for Wairoa from 7am to 2pm.

Fears for community wellbeing

Nedine Thatcher Swann, chief executive of the Gisborne District Council said the more rain that fell, the more she worried about the mental health of the local community.

There have been three major weather events in 2023, and another four in 2022, so supporting friends, whānau and community properly is “top of mind,” she said.

Across the district there were 24 families being helped by the Government’s Temporary Accommodation Support after their homes were flooded.

“The psychological impacts of having two cyclones and this weather event is just immense,” Swann said.

“We’ve still got water shortages at the moment, we’ve managed to connect some of the smaller communities, but we’ve got to look at them and people who want to clean up the silt. Under these water restrictions it becomes really difficult.”

She said damaged roads that were cutting off communities were being assessed, and she expected an updated from the roading crew later on Tuesday.

Tokomaru Bay is cut off on two sides - from Gisborne between Tolaga Bay and Tokomaru Bay, and from the northern end at Te Puia.

The council and Waka Kotahi wre looking at installing a bypass, but the rain was making it difficult to begin working in earnest.

“We’re a prisoner to the weather at the moment,” Swann said.

“We just really need some clear days so that the team can get out there and start doing the work. It becomes incredibly dangerous when we’ve got a lot of this rain and we’re in these kinds of conditions.”

Swann, who is also a civil defence controller, said while she was not sure how many Covid-19 infections were in the Tairāwhiti district, her own team were taking precautions not to get infected during the state of emergency.

Surface flooding on Nelson Rd in Gisborne.

“We’re certainly making sure that we’re testing in the morning as we’re coming into the centre and wearing masks.”

Keep off the roads

Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence has told people to avoid driving through any floodwaters and to keep off the roads if possible.

Meanwhile, relentless rain that was briefly intense t caused severe surface flooding in Mangapapa, Gisborne, forcing families to leave their homes.

“The rain woke, I’m sure, everyone in Gisborne up at 3am. It was rain like we’ve never heard before … it’s absolutely pouring,” Gisborne mayor Rehette Stoltz told RNZ.

She said the “relentless” rainfall hitting Gisborne overnight and on Tuesday morning was briefly more intense than what the region saw during Cyclone Gabrielle

In one hour, between 3am and 4am, the MetService rain gauge at Gisborne airport recorded 23.4mm of rain.

Tairāwhiti Civil Defence said in a social media update that the rain had caused drains to flood and creeks to rise to about 2 metres and there was “severe surface flooding” for the whole suburb.

Michelle Swart and her daughter Sharon watching floodwaters rise around their home on Nelson Street Gisborne .

Gisborne District Council confirmed that 15 families left their home to stay with families and friends.

“Multiple crews are out on the ground exploring where any blocked drains or culverts might be so we’re just trying to figure out what might be causing all that flooding to happen,” council spokesperson Melanie Thornton said.

She said people should stay home if they could and out of floodwaters.

“There is danger even when the water is shallow,” she said.

Tairāwhiti Civil Defence controller Phil Nickerson said a bridge had been seriously damaged to the west of Gisborne.

“As well as the affected suburb of Mangapapa, it has been reported a bridge before Bushy Knoll turnoff in Tiniroto has been seriously damaged,” Nickerson said.

Roading crews had been out since first light clearing drains and culverts.

Sharon Swart walks through floodwater around her parents home on Nelson Street in Gisborne.

Rural home driveways and culverts were inundated on Nelson Rd, and in some parts one lane was entirely flooded.

Nelson Rd resident Sharon Swart has been watching the water rise around her house. It had notbreached the inside yet.

Because the ground never dried from the last rain, this time the flooding is more severe, she said.

“It wasn’t this bad last time, the water didn’t get as high.”

The ground was swampy and mushy, she said, standing in water up to her calves on her lawn.

So far no one had been to check on them, but she hadn’t reported the flooding yet either.

Margaret Pohe’s home on the corner of Glenelg Rd fared fine overnight under the deluge but once the rain stopped around 9am, her lawn turned into a moat.

There was about 15 centimetres of water all over her large section, and sandbags lining the doorways. But the flooding around her house actually got worse after the rain had stopped.

“The ground can’t take it. It can’t take any more,” Pohe said.

During Cyclone Gabrielle, Pohe’s daughter Stephanie Tibble came to get her out. The flat at the back of the house was flooded and a lot of belongings and furnishings were lost.

MetService has lifted a heavy rain warning about and south of Gisborne City, which was in place from 6am to 1pm on Tuesday.