Nelson:
'Never seen it like this': Homes flooded, roads closed by storm
1 February, 2018
Families had just minutes to gather their belongings before wading through knee-deep water as they were evacuated from their homes.
"A bit of a trifecta" of a very low pressure system, king high tides and high winds flooded homes in the Nelson area, while huge waves crashed across roads, and high winds bought down trees.
Waves were breaking straight over the sea wall onto peoples' houses in Mapua, north of Rabbit Island, while residents being evacuated from the Monaco area of Nelson said it was the worst storm they had ever experienced.
Chloe Patterson was evacuated from her home in Ruby Bay. "We had about five minutes ... but we managed to barricade all our walls before the water even came into our yard, but once the wall was breached it just flooded in because along the sea wall it all filled up before it could get to the [flood] gates and then the waves started coming in and impacting the fences."
Another house on her street, Broad Sea Avenue, was thought to have come off its foundations.
Firefighters
evacuated people from Tait St, a residential street just off Stafford
Drive, the coastal road running along Ruby Bay into Mapua. People
were wading through knee-deep water out of their houses, while
firemen were carrying out kids. Some of the residents were just
recovering from flooding six weeks ago.
The
low-lying Monaco peninsula, near Nelson, was cut off from the rest of
the city by the floodwaters. On Martin St, police were using a Nelson
Surf Rescue inflatable rescue boat to help people off the peninsula,
including a 94-year-old man.
Some
residents were happy to stay, despite the water seeping into their
homes - in some houses, it was knee-deep.
Significant
damage was visible on the outside of the buildings, as well as to the
road. It appeared that seawater had caused the electricity
transformer box to explode, blowing the roof off, which meant most of
Monaco didn't have power.
The
tide was still high as police did final checks on residents.
The
famous Boat Shed Cafe in Nelson was pummelled by the waves, and has
announced it will close indefinitely in the wake of the storm.
In
Golden Bay, gale force winds caused trees to topple on roads and the
high tide inundated many coastal areas. Police advised of some
flooding in Rototai, and emergency service crews are on hand to
assist property owners.
Golden
Bay resident Jude Gillies said she had "never seen the tide
across the road as much as it is today". She was in the Band
Rotunda watching the high tide inundate Abel Tasman Drive in Pohara.
There
were dozens of vehicles backed-up and spectators were standing on
either side to watch the high tide crash over the road and into the
cliff face. There were "huge logs and debris" and "rocks
being washed over the road", and the water was "lifting out
great potholes", she said.
"The
rocks are too big to lift, that's how strong the force is," she
said. "I think people are still risking driving through, but
it's a case of whether the road should be closed or people should use
their common sense and not go through."
She
said they had gone down to have a look because it was "so
exciting". "The sea is so warm; it's high tide, but there's
no rain."
Nelson
Tasman Civil Defence Emergency Management group controller Roger Ball
said a declaration of emergency was not in the Nelson region at the
moment "but that is a consideration in our thinking".
The
flooding was caused by "a bit of a trifecta" with a very
low pressure system, king high tides and high winds. "That's
driving a lot of water and storm surge into the head of Tasman Bay
and parts of Golden Bay."
Three
Civil Defence centres had been set up at Collingwood Area School,
Hill's Community Church at Mapua and the Honest Lawyer at Monaco.
There had been self-evacuations of about 20 to 30 people from
Collingwood, Mapua and Ruby Bay, and people had also been evacuated
from Monaco.
ROADS
CLOSED AS WAVES CRASH
All
coastal routes were affected by storm surges, Tasman District Council
said.
Rocks
Rd in Nelson, the section of State Highway 6 that runs along the
coast south of Nelson city centre, was closed to light vehicles after
waves crashed across the carriageway.
Dramatic
video showed cars trying to navigate the route just before it was
shut.
While
waves were crashing over Rocks Rd, at about 10.30am, a person inside
a taxi reportedly had a seizure, police said. St John Ambulance shift
manager Debbie Clark said they were called to the incident but didn't
have to transport the person to Nelson Hospital
Rocks
Road remained open to heavy vehicles. The closure affected Russell St
to the lights at Tahunanui. "Our contractors liaised directly
with police, and the decision was made jointly to close the road to
light vehicles at 10am," NZTA spokesman Andrew Knackstedt said.
In
Golden Bay, the tide was coming over the road in Rotatai, Collingwood
and Pohara to Tarakohe and Ligar Bay.
Takaka
Hill was closed between Riwaka Valley Road and Aaron Creek Road, due
to fallen trees. Motorists were being told turn back, expect long
delays and be aware of power lines. At 2.30pm, it was re-opened to
one lane.
Abel
Tasman Drive was also closed at the Pohara Band Rotunda due to
flooding.
Stafford
Drive in Mapua was closed from Pinehill Rd to the Ruby Bay Bluffs.
Lower Queen Street in Richmond was also closed between McShane Rd to
Lansdowne Rd.
A
police media centre spokeswoman said a vehicle was partly hanging in
the river at Blackbyre Rd, off the Appleby Highway in Tasman. No one
was in the vehicle.
The
combination of a king tide, super moon and remnants of a tropical
cyclone hit the small settlement of Glenduan, north of Nelson.
Inspector
Tony Hill, Acting Tasman District Commander said police were
recommending that people take extreme care when travelling on the
Coastal Highway between Greymouth and Westport, as a number of trees
have come down.
"The
weather is making driving conditions extremely difficult and we're
urging people to stay off the roads unless travel is absolutely
necessary," he said. "If you do need to travel, please
drive to the conditions – watch your speed and following
distances."
Tasman
District Council community relations manager Chris Choat said at
midday that the tides were beginning to subside and the surge
beginning to drop, but "we are still warning people to take
care. There's going to be a lot of water around."
There were dozens of vehicles backed-up and spectators were standing on either side to watch the high tide crash over the road and into the cliff face. There were "huge logs and debris" and "rocks being washed over the road", and the water was "lifting out great potholes", she said.
"The rocks are too big to lift, that's how strong the force is," she said. "I think people are still risking driving through, but it's a case of whether the road should be closed or people should use their common sense and not go through."
She said they had gone down to have a look because it was "so exciting". "The sea is so warm; it's high tide, but there's no rain."
FLIGHTS
WERE PAUSED
Flights
were suspended at Nelson airport after a nearby stream burst its
banks, flooding the airport's access road.
The
water was knee-deep at 11am at the area around the construction site,
airport marketing manager Sally Russ said.
At
12, Nelson airport staff were slowly letting people in and out of the
airport. About 30 centimetres of water was still on the airport
access road, but the water was subsiding quickly.
Flights
had mostly resumed by 2pm but passengers should check with their
airlines directly. Updates would be posted on the airport's Facebook
page.
CIVIL
DEFENCE CENTRE ACTIVATED
Council
spokesperson Paul Shaddock said this was different to a state of
emergency, as the centre's role was to determine the extent of the
event.
The
centre was monitoring the situation and liaising with the councils,
DHBs and emergency services, he said.
Road
closure updates could be found on the councils' Facebook pages.
One
of the main central city car parks in Nelson was flooded with knee
high water on Thursday morning.
The
low-lying Wakatu Square car park often floods during king tides, as
sea water comes up through the drains. But Nelson City Council said
it was an unusual weather event.
"People
that have been working for the council for more than 30 years have
never seen a storm surge that high," spokesman Paul Shaddock
said.
The
tide level was about 50 cm higher than expected, he said. The water
subsided quickly.
The
council didn't shut the car park in advance, despite forecasts of
king tides culminating with heavy rain and gales force winds, because
it had put out plenty of warnings, Shaddock said.
"Signage
was put up prior to the event, and we'd warned people on social media
about the likelihood that car parks would be flooded." The
council would be assessing what had happened.
Nelson
coastguard president Wayne Harrison said they hadn't had any call
outs but were doing a patrol around the harbour to look for any
damage.
He
said one of the coastguard volunteers had been at the Honest Lawyer
at Monaco to help the Surf Life Saving members with radio control.
Harrison
said a yacht with no one on board had come off its mooring at the
height of the storm and drifted through the channel to Tahunanui
beach.
Tasman
district Council said roadside rubbish and recycling services were
suspended and the rubbish tips at Richmond and Mariri were also
closed. They will re-evaluate the closures at 2pm.
The
first day of the Nelson Buskers Festival was cancelled due to the
stormy weather. The shows over the next few days should go ahead as
scheduled.
RAINFALL,
KING TIDE AND SWELL
Metservice
meteorologist Lisa Murray said heavy rainfall combined with the king
tide, gale-force winds and a significant ocean swell resulted in
Thursday morning's storm surge.
A
4.5 metre tide was forecast for 11.22am in Nelson and more than 100
millimetres of rain fell in the Western Ranges on Thursday morning,
with 12.2 mm was recorded in central Nelson.
Murray
said the Wairoa River, like others in the region, had difficulty
during king tides as the water at the mouth of the river had nowhere
to go. Combined with that, there was a four-metre swell coming from
the north into Tasman Bay.
"On
top of that, you have really strong northerly winds, so you are going
to get wind waves as well."
The
Nelson station reported a wind gust of 91 kilometres per hour on
Thursday morning.
Murray
said there was more rain forecast about the ranges on Thursday. Later
in the evening, the wind would change to become westerly.
Local
state of emergency declared as heavy rain, gales thrash West Coast
1
February, 2018
A
local state of emergency has been declared in Buller as heavy rain
and strong gales continue to thrash the region, forcing residents in
some coastal communities to evacuate their homes.
Power
has been cut to hundreds of homes, schools have closed, roads have
shut, and several buildings have been damaged as the remnants of
tropical cyclone Fehi head down the country.
The
remnants of tropical cyclone Fehi has closed roads and schools and
damaged roofs in Greymouth on Thursday.
Civil
Defence said a local state of emergency had been declared in Buller
on Thursday afternoon in response to the severe weather.
The
Buller District Council said the main problem was the lunchtime high
tide. The water was starting to recede in some places but continued
to rise in areas north of Westport.
Homes
in many low-lying areas around Westport had been evacuated, including
Snodgrass, Carters Beach, and Derby St. Many houses had flooded and
several local roads and highways had been closed.
The
council advised evacuated residents not to return home until they
were told it was safe.
Residents
were advised to stay off the roads, stay inside, look after
themselves and their neighbours, and check the Buller Civil Defence
Facebook page for critical updates. In emergencies people could dial
111 or the district's emergency operation centre on 03 789 799.
Mayor
Garry Howard declared the state of emergency for the district at 1pm.
An emergency operation centre had been on standby since Wednesday and
was in full swing on Thursday, coordinating points of welfare,
communications and general emergency operations.
SH6
had been closed between Hokitika and Haast and between Greymouth and
Rapahoe (Coast Rd) due to strong winds and fallen trees. One lane of
SH6 reopened just after 2pm between Westport and Murchison (Buller
Gorge) and motorists were warned to take extra care on SH73 (Arthur's
Pass) and SH7 (Lewis Pass) due to the gales.
TORNADO
SPOTTED NEAR GREYMOUTH
Blaketown
resident Rewa Kanara saw a small tornado on the Grey River wharf on
Thursday morning.
"The
noise was crazy. It wasn't real tight. It was more like a mist. I was
driving and it was beside us on the water where the boats are; it
skipped the road to the park then puckered out. My jaw literally
dropped," she said.
Grey
District Mayor Tony Kokshorn said the area was being battered by
"severe gales", which were blowing debris around and had
brought down several fences.
Greymouth's
central business district was closed, as were several local roads,
including Beach Rd at Rapahoe, and the roads to Cobden and Blaketown
breakwaters and Aorangi Reserve.
The
roads to Jellyman Park, via Domett Esplanade, were also closed as sea
water and debris had come over the road.
Cobden
resident Zane Smith was told to evacuate by police, but chose to
remain at his home in Domett Esplanade.
"This
is the first time we've ever seen the sea come into Domett Esplanade
like this and it rose really, really fast, so all of this water came
up in about 20 minutes.
"This
is ocean water that has come up through the stormwater drains because
the sea is only 20 metres over there . . . We've got a giant north
swell coming through here essentially the land couldn't handle it and
it's flooding us.
"Some
of the residents have chosen to leave, but we have chosen to stay and
see what happens. Hopefully since the tide is going down it will
start easing off now," he said.
Lexie
Skelton, another Domett Esplanade resident, chose to leave her
property.
"We
just picked up what we couldn't leave behind. It was scary. It was
coming up our driveway so when the police told us to leave we did.
"I've
been here 49 years and the first year we lived here the sea came into
our property, but they built the seawall and it hasn't happened since
until now," she said.
CONCERN
FOR FISHING BOAT
Two
small fishing boats that had been struggling to reach the Port of
Greymouth in the stormy conditions had been sent back out to sea.
Kokshorn
said the boats had been too close to rocks and the gale-force winds
and high waves made it too risky for them to keep trying to get in.
Coastguard
volunteers had assisted them and were comfortable with their
position.
"The
boats aborted their attempt to get into port and are sitting four
miles off the coast," Kokshorn said.
"It
is scary for them. They are pointed into the wind and severe waves
are coming across, but they are coping."
Kokshorn
said a state of emergency had not been declared for the Grey district
because, with the tide peaking about 12.15pm, they considered worst
was over and emergency services were coping.
Winds
of up to 100kmh were expected to continue through to Friday morning
though and authorities were keeping a close eye on the coastal
settlement of Rapahoe, he said.
A
council spokesman said: "People are advised not to travel unless
absolutely necessary and be aware of flying debris, rubbish on roads,
potential slips [and] fallen trees.
"Schools
have been advised to keep students inside away from flying debris."
Power
was out from Reefton to Inangahua, and from Kumara and Hokitika to
South Westland.
Crews
from lines company Westpower were working to identify faults and cut
fallen trees, but general manager of assets Roger Griffiths said it
could take some time.
Griffiths
said where powerlines were down people must treat them as live and
turn off their home circuits in case power came back on without
warning. For a power line emergency people could call 0800 768 241.
Westland
Mayor Bruce Smith said the wind had "gone right through and
taken hundreds of trees down", knocking out power "nearly
everywhere".
"We
were worried about the water, but it's been the wind."
Speaking
to Stuff from Kaniere, just inland from Hokitika, Smith said he was
unable to get back to his office because large numbers of felled
trees were blocking roads.
All
school students in the area were sent home after the power went off
late morning.
Highways
flood and flights stop as winds close to 140kmh hammer Wellington
1
February, 2018
Winds
gusting close to 140kmh have hammered the Wellington region, toppling
tress, cancelling flights, turning wheelie bins into "missiles"
and whipping up waves that have flooded highways and eaten away sea
walls.
Metservice
was forecasting gales across the region on Thursday as much of the
country is hit by the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Fehi.
Wind
gusts of 126kmh were recorded at Kelburn in Wellington about midday.
Gusts of 137kmh were also recorded at Mt Kaukau, also in Wellington.
Alfie
Croasdale, 9, enjoyed sitting through the waves at Plimmerton Beach.
His mum, Shona Croasdale, said the photo was taken about 1pm on
Thrusday afternoon and "he was loving it". "This is
normally great access to go down to the beach, but obviously not
today. This was about the tenth wave he sat under."
Metservice
Meteorologist Tui McInnes said high winds began to pick up in the
capital about 9am. The strong winds were expected to continue
throughout the afternoon.
Multiple
flights have been cancelled or delayed arriving and departing
Wellington Airport where winds of 116kmh have been recorded.
In the weekend I posted the following report.
This has now been largely confirmed by the following.
Toxic
algae outbreak: Wellington swimmers, dog walkers warned to avoid Hutt
River
31
January, 2018
Greater
Wellington Regional Council has issued a warning for the Hutt River
after toxic algae in the area reached dangerous levels.
Dog
walkers and swimmers have been warned to avoid the river south of
Silverstream through to Birchville after algae levels rose through
January.
"Algae
mats in these areas are thick and starting to peel, which presents
danger to swimmers and dogs," says Greater Wellington
environmental scientist Dr Mark Heath.
"We
have to be prudent in these circumstances and advise the public that
it's not safe to swim in those stretches of the river."
The
algae can cause nausea, vomiting, numbness, tingling, muscle
twitches, shaking, weakness, and breathing difficulties.
It
is also possible for the algae to cause convulsions and loss of
consciousness, although this is unlikely.
The
council does not expect the rain forecast for Thursday and Friday to
wash away the algae from the river, and is encouraging swimmers
to check
online before
they go swimming around Wellington.
Those
wanting to cool off in the heat will be grateful to hear the
Akatarawa River and the rivers in the Kaitoke Regional Park are still
safe for swimming.
Drought,
fire, now a flood in Dunedin
There
were fears flooding in Dunedin could be as bad as the 2015 floods,
but it appears the city has “dodged a bullet”, RNZ reporter Ian
Telfer says
King
tide closes Auckland coastal road
Christchurch
swelters in 35 degree heat, its hottest day in two years
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