People on the West Coast feel abadoned after deluge

Flood-hit Westland residents: 'We're on our own'

People in south Westland say they feel neglected and let down after major flooding in the region.

Photo: Civil Defence West Coast

Radio NZ,

30 March, 2019

This week's big storm left one woman dead, cut power, closed roads and destroyed the Waiho Bridge linking the Franz Josef and Fox townships on State Highway 6.

Richard Molloy said parts of his farm on the flats beside the Waiho River were two-and-a half-metres underwater after the stopbank breached.

He said locals are furious that previous calls for it to be repaired were ignored, and that officials are yet to commit to another one. The effects of the storm have had a serious impact on residents and they were unhappy about its impact on their region.

"Let down, gutted, all of the above and a whole lot more. We just feel we're on our own. The Regional Council have been very tardy on any maintenance on these things," Mr Molloy said.

He said at a meeting last night the 70 residents of the Waiho flats became irate, particularly when they found out that the appropriate West Coast Regional Council officials weren't present.

The council's chief executive, Mark Meehan, said engineers have been working in the area all week so farmers can start recovering.

He said staff will be talking with the community about the long-term options.

More heavy rain on its way

Meanwhile, MetService has issued warnings about heavy rain coming to Westland on Sunday night.

The warnings predict about 100mm to 150mm of rain about the ranges, and 60mm to 90mm near the coast over 12 hours from 7pm on Sunday. Up to 35mm of rain an hour were possible, MetService said, and could cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly. Surface flooding and slips are also possible and driving conditions may be hazardous.

Forecaster Fulong Lu said the intensity and amount of rain would be less compared with last week.

The moving front would likely bring rain to areas in the North Island in the coming days, he added.