Widespread flooding in Otago
THE deluge has eased for Otago but flooding may not be over after downpours hit the region with power outages, landslips and evacuations yesterday.
Rivers spilled and caused widespread flooding in areas including the Taieri, Roxburgh, Oamaru, Balclutha and pockets of Dunedin.
Rain is expected to ease today but rivers will be closely monitored as some have not yet reached peak levels.
The Dunedin City Council will hold a briefing this morning over whether to reopen its Emergency Operations Centre, which was opened yesterday afternoon before being closed at 8.30pm.
MetService meteorologist Andrew James said yesterday was Dunedin’s wettest day in a November which already had had three times the average rainfall.
So far this month, 150.8mm of rain had been recorded at Dunedin Airport and at 7pm last night 59.2mm had fallen in just 24 hours.
More rain was forecast for the rest of the week, but nothing like the amount which fell yesterday, he said.
There was also concern a heavy tide last night could exacerbate flooding.
Elsewhere, more than 50mm of rain fell in Roxburgh, about 34mm in Oamaru and 30mm to 40mm in parts of the Clutha District.
Last night, State Highway 1 south of Milton was closed to cars and flooding and slips on SH8 closed the highway between Clarksville, near Milton, and Alexandra.
Police went house to house in the Taieri settlement of Henley yesterday afternoon to advise residents to evacuate.
Last night, the Taieri River had not yet breached the floodbanks at the settlement, but some houses were flooded by hill runoff.
Fenz spokesman Daryl Ball said the service fielded 84 callouts in Otago and Southland yesterday, including from a man who became stuck in his car in floodwater near Kaitangata.
Most of the callouts were to individual homes where flooded basements or backyards had flooded.
At least one house was flooded in Ranfurly, and the town’s bowllike rugby field was full of water.
Flooding on the runway caused the cancellation of a flight out of Dunedin Airport and meant an Air New Zealand flight from Auckland had to be diverted to Christchurch.
KiwiRail said it closed the line south of Dunedin as parts were submerged, and would inspect it for damage once the water receded.
In Mosgiel, Gordon Rd was inundated by surface flooding which led to it being closed for a short time and retailers scrambled to find sandbags to protect their stores from the rising water.
Mosgiel shop owner Julie Choie, of Choies Takeaway, said she blocked her door with sandbags and water did not get inside.
‘‘We’ve had a lot of support from the community, people are calling up to make sure we’re OK,’’ Ms Choie said.
Ravensbourne was another area badly hit by the weather. Several dips on SH88 had deep surface flooding, forcing heavy traffic to grind almost to a standstill.
A large slip just past Maia closed the highway’s northbound lane, forcing firefighters to act as impromptu traffic controllers.
In Ravensbourne itself, the front of one property, opposite Moller Park, had turned into a waterfall.
At Deborah Bay slips had blocked Aramoana Rd which was down to one lane last night.
At 5.15pm the Otago Regional Council opened the Riverside spillway gates on the Taieri River at Outram to divert flooding into a ponding area, which is part of the Taieri Flood Protection Scheme.
Sandbags were made available for concerned residents in Mosgiel and South Dunedin.
Dunedin City Council communications and marketing manager Graham McKerracher said last night the worst of the rain had gone so staff would assess this morning what action would need to be taken.
Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull said it was his understanding the Portobello Rd pumping station did not get to full capacity yesterday afternoon.
Residents in Ravensbourne and some areas of the Taieri experienced power cuts.
Heavy rain infiltrating the wastewater system forced up manhole covers in many areas, so all available bypasses were opened to alleviate pressure.
The Otago Regional Council said the Taieri River was expected to reach a ‘‘second peak’’ today or tomorrow, after first peaking yesterday afternoon.
Levels would staying high for potentially up to a week.
The Pomahaka River at the Burkes Ford flow site was approaching its third flood warning level of 4.3m yesterday afternoon and the Clutha River continued to rise last night.
Otago Regional Council science, hazards and engineering director Dr Gavin Palmer said river levels continued to be monitored around Otago.
The council would also monitor the Mill Creek pump station, which came under pressure during the July 2017 floods and the council had ‘‘brought in extra materials to stabilise it if needed, although we don’t anticipate any issues’’, Dr Palmer said.
The flood protection scheme was ‘‘operating as expected’’.
In other areas of Otago, Loganburn Dam in the Maniototo was spilling over and the regional council was monitoring flows from Paerau and Waipiata.
Staff worked during the night to keep an eye on river levels in Lower Clutha, Dunedin, Taieri and North Otago.
Dunedin’s rubbish and recycling collection will go ahead as usual today and areas missed yesterday will be collected if roads are open.
The city council recommended people stay out of waterways and not to collect shellfish for 48 hours after wastewater overflow to the Silverstream in Mosgiel and minor overflows to other waterways, including Otago Harbour.