MONDAY, 14 JANUARY 2002
Rain causes havoc in south, Coromandel 14 January 2002
Heavy rain and flooding throughout the South Island and in the Coromandel has cut off communities, caused the evacuation of homes and left holidaymakers stranded. About 200mm of rain fell from Kaikoura to South Canterbury during the weekend, washing out bridges and roads and causing slips and rockslides on major highways.
A full scale clean-up is under way in Akaroa where streams rose to dangerous levels, flooding homes and cutting off the town's water supply.
Banks Peninsula Mayor Bob Parker said floodwaters overwhelmed many bridges and streets.
The main street in the historic town was closed and homes were evacuated in the early hours of yesterday morning as rising creek levels threatened many properties.
"It was pretty dramatic," Mr Parker said.
"Looking around the town at about 6am was very frightening and if it had lasted another few hours it would have been far worse.
"It was incredibly localised, with other areas of Banks Peninsula hardly affected."
The manager of Bon Accord Backpackers in the town, June Murdoch, said the fire brigade told her to evacuate the building at 4am.
"I got the fright of my life when I went outside and saw how high the stream was," she said.
"There's normally a 10ft drop to the stream but it was only a couple of feet from the top of the bank."
Ms Murdoch told the backpackers to get dressed and took them into her house.
Once the early morning high tide receded, Ms Murdoch said the water level dropped dramatically. But her backpackers remains closed until a full building inspection can take place.
The Akaroa bowling green and the camping ground in Le Bons Bay also suffered extensive flooding damage.
Mr Parker said the main concern was now to clear the roads and conserve water until the local stream supply was reconnected.
Lower parts of the South Island were also badly hit. Slips and rockslides made driving dangerous and police were urging motorists only to drive if absolutely necessary.
Senior Sergeant Ian Freeman of the police southern communications centre said general driving conditions in the Canterbury area were "pretty bad".
Slips and flooding caused problems on State Highway 1, north and south of Kaikoura. Rising river levels in the area caused farmers to move stock to higher ground.
Mud and rocks on parts of SH7 made driving through the Lewis Pass treacherous. About 20 homes were cut off when a bridge was washed out at Kowhai Bush, near Springfield, west of Christchurch.
A ford washed out the road from Hanmer through Molesworth Station and there had also been several slips, the Department of Conservation said. Many inland roads around Timaru and Ashburton were described as inaccessible.
SH1 was closed in several places in Mid and South Canterbury as heavy rain in the foothills caused rivers to rise rapidly and flow over farmland and roads.
Further south, highway links to Dunedin were cut for more than 24 hours as floodwaters swept over SH1 near Waikouaiti, 42km northeast of Dunedin, swamping neighbouring farmland and forcing motorists, many returning from holidays, to turn back.
A pool of water up to 1m deep, covering about 1km of road, covered part of the road. However, a detour was available. By late Saturday afternoon, SH1 at Maheno, 13km southwest of Oamaru, was also closed because of flooding, although a detour was also available.
Waikouaiti resident Julie Kelley said it was the worst flooding in the area she had seen in the 20 years she had lived in the township.
A Transit [State Highways Authority] spokesman said delays and detours for those travelling back from Christchurch meant a "huge extra trip". Although it rained in Dunedin most of Sunday, with the Water of Leith running high, little other than minor flooding was reported.
Emergency services said a slippery road caused a six-car pile-up on the southern motorway, near Lookout Point, about 10.20am but no-one was hurt.
Southerner train passengers were bussed between Palmerston and Timaru, after flood water caused "bridge movement" at a bridge between St Andrews and Studholme, near Timaru.
Tranz Rail spokeswoman Jacky Curson said the problem also caused delays to freight trains. She was unsure when the bridge would be repaired.
In the North Island, the Coromandel Peninsula was also hit by heavy rain. Residents and roading contractors were mopping up near Thames after the Tararu Stream bursts its banks, forcing 25 homes to be evacuated.
A washed out bridge and several slips closed other roads in the area. Police said while many people were unable to leave the area, everyone had been accounted for.
The MetService said more heavy rain was forecast for the South Island, while the North could expect thundery showers during the next few days.
Meanwhile, Taranaki was also hit by the unseasonal weather. "I don't want any more," South Taranaki farmer Michael Hinz said. Mr Hinz's farm was hit by a deluge on Saturday, flooding his lawn, cowshed and washing away much of the metal road leading to the cowshed at his Kaponga farm. According to Mr Hinz's rain gauge, 43mm fell between 12.30am and 1pm - enough to flood the cow shed and put the pit under about half a metre of water.
"It came right inside the milker room. I couldn't see the edges of the track. It almost bowled me over, there was so much water coming down."
Hail, the size of "your thumb nail", also fell, while at the same time New Plymouth residents were experiencing hot and humid weather. Mr Hinz said it was the third day in a row his cowshed had flooded. On Thursday he recorded a deluge of 23mm in one hour.
Meanwhile, a heavy deluge on Friday afternoon caused surface flooding to several shops along Stratford's main street. The lower weir of the Opuha Dam, near Fairlie, which was designed to wash out in a one-in-five-year flood, was breached yesterday, creating a brief surge of water down the river system.
Networks South chief executive Jim Pearce said the fusible section of the weir, designed to breach deliberately to help protect the main structure and regulate water flow, breached early yesterday morning.
Environment Canterbury (Ecan) and the police were kept informed and the surge of water down the river did not cause any problems, Mr Pearce said. - Additional reporting by The Daily News, The Timaru Herald and NZPA
This isn't how summer should be in New Zealand - shaggy eel