Work ongoing in aftermath of severe weather event

The clean-up following a severe weather event that barrelled through the region earlier this month is progressing, with Far North District Council contractors dealing with more than 200 reported incidents on nearly 40 roads.

The roads affected by the storm are either currently under repair or being assessed, with most incidents involving over slips, road dropouts, and debris on the roads. The most heavily impacted links are Wainui Road and Rawhiti Road.

However, the wider local road network is still vulnerable, and people are urged to always drive to the conditions and take extra care as unexpected hazards may appear at any time.

It is unclear what the estimated cost of the damage from the weather event will be while roads are still being assessed or being worked on, and it could be several weeks before a total figure can be confirmed.

During the worst of the storm that battered the district with torrential rain and severe thunderstorms across several days, many roads were closed due to flooding, fallen trees, slips, and blocked culverts. This included the Rawhiti Road at the Ngaiotonga bridge, which was closed after flash floods washed away the road approach to the bridge abutment, isolating a number of residents until it could be repaired. A temporary repair was completed on Saturday 24 January, reopening access to communities between the Whangaruru Peninsula and the Ōakura area. Matauri Bay campsite had to be evacuated as a precaution following a large slip, with campers sheltering at Te Tāpui Marae.

With so many roads affected by closures, the contractors’ priority was to ensure at least a single lane on all roads was open, which proved a successful strategy.

The council opened its Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) at Kaikohe, which acted as a nerve centre for the response to weather-related emergencies in the district during the storm.