BY THE NUMBERS
alarming rate at Simr Sandu’s home on the banks of the river and he feared for his elderly mother. She was too frail to wade through the waist-deep water. Christchurch City Council issued an ‘‘urgent’’ evacuation message to residents in parts of the city about 2.10pm.
Further south, the Kaitangata community had a race against time and tide to save the south Otago town from flooding.
With the Clutha River threatening to burst its banks, and the king tide due to reach its height mid-afternoon, crews from Clutha district fire brigades and volunteers sprang into action to fill and place sandbags – and managed to avert the worst of the flooding from entering the town. ● About 100 homes evacuated in Outram, west of Dunedin. Residents evacuated from Mosgiel and Henley. ● About 120 troops deployed in North Canterbury and Otago ● Homeowners leave some properties in North Otago. ● Wastewater overflows in Dunedin streets. ● Access to Milton, south of Dunedin, closed as SH1 blocked north and south. ● Dunedin expected to get the most rain – up to 200mm over 27 hours. ● The only highway connecting Canterbury and Otago is SH8 between Twizel and Omarama, but chains are essential. ● Freezing conditions early today expected to make roads in Canterbury and Otago dangerous.