Deluge continues as slips close motorways

AUCKLAND: Aucklanders have started cleaning up the mess after another deluge left parts of the city flooded once again yesterday, while major slips continue to cause havoc on the city’s infrastructure and parts of the country remain under heavy rain warnings.

More than 160 red notices have now been issued to Auckland buildings, deeming them unsafe, with as many as 6000 more properties still to be assessed.

Several major roads remained closed as severe slips cut vital links.

Tamaki Dr in Auckland’s east is unlikely to open to motorists for a couple of days after slips blocked the road yesterday.

More heavy rain also forced Auckland’s Northern Motorway to close in both directions due to flooding for about 90 minutes yesterday, before reopening just before 8am.

Other sections of motorway were severely affected.

Further north, a landslip on the Brynderwyns crushed plans to reopen a vital stretch of State Highway 1 to northbound motorists last night.

Just an hour after a planned reopening of the Brynderwyns was announced, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency was forced to delay due to another slip.

Niwa reported yesterday that in 24 hours, 71mm of rain fell at its Western Springs climate station in Auckland — a ‘‘month’s worth of rain . . . again’’.

Much of the rain fell in only a few hours, including 25.2mm in one hour, 44.2mm in two hours and 58.6mm in three hours.

Bus and rail services were affected and at least 20 Auckland Transport buses needed damage assessments.

The Ministry of Education reversed a decision to close all schools around the city until next Tuesday and said inperson classes may resume today if safe to do so.

Auckland Council chief executive Jim Stabback said there had been a massive effort by staff and contractors to respond to Aucklanders, who remain in a state of emergency.

Nearly every beach across the region has been given a black flag, which Safeswim said meant there was a high risk of illness if people entered the water.

The forecast was not so cheery for Bay of Plenty and Coromandel.

MetService issued a heavyrain watch for Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Coromandel, Fiordland, Nelson and Rotorua last night.

A front moving eastwards across the Bay of Plenty was now expected to ‘‘reverse direction’’ today and move back towards the Coromandel Peninsula, MetService said.

The red heavyrain warning for Bay of Plenty, west of Kawerau was lifted yesterday, but a heavyrainfall watch was in place for the possibility of further heavy rain today.

Heavyrain watches remain in place for Western Tasman and northern Fiordland.