Driver outruns colossal landslide
When mud and water began assailing her car, Joanne Tapara was confused and terrified.
Now she knows she is lucky not to be buried under a King Country landslip.
Between 5 and 20 hectares of Koromiko Grazing Ltd farm slipped over the Mangaokewa River on Tuesday afternoon about 7km east of the Mangaokewa Rd intersection with State Highway 30, and about 20km upstream of Te Kuiti.
The speed and volume of the slip carried rock and dirt over the river, blocking Mangaokewa Rd until Thursday morning.
Tapara was driving home from work as an office administrator at Koromiko when the slip struck.
‘‘My heart was racing but I didn’t know what the hell it was,’’ Tapara said.
‘‘It moved me [the car], it covered all the windows and everything ... When I looked back it looked like it was chasing me, so I hopped back in the car and [drove] down the road. ‘‘Someone is looking over me.’’ Masses of dirt and rock have filled the river and discoloured it.
The Waitomo District Council said the Mangaokewa river had continued to produce safe drinking water at the Te Kuiti water treatment plant so far, but its production has slowed.
The Waikato Regional Council said muddied water was showing up downstream in the Waipa River.
The council is sampling the water to assess the degree of sedimentation.
Koromiko farm operations manager Dean Boros said it was believed six cows, 40 ewes and 60-70 lambs were swallowed by the mud.
Their bodies are yet to be found. ‘‘We went down [to the slip] and saw the fence ripped out and water pipes and the sheep gone and the cows gone.
‘‘We realised it was pretty bad,’’ Boros said. ‘‘There’s about 30 acres gone. ‘‘Probably 10 acres (4 hectares) is the main slip.’’
The rest of the paddock is covered in a metre of mud.
Although insurance might cover the loss of stock, the land is lost.
The amount of rain was already causing problems, Boros said.
‘‘We’ve never had a winter like this. It’s terrible.’’
Regional council hazards team leader Rick Liefting said that while such incidents were rare and the cause of the slip was yet to be determined, it was a good example of the increased risks the region faced when catchments were saturated.
‘‘March and April saw rainfall and river levels at their highest on record in places.
‘‘Based on current forecast rainfall, we don’t have any particular current concerns about river flooding or other rain-related hazards in the region.
‘‘But, as this incident near Te Kuiti shows, we need to remain vigilant for hazards, risks and their potential impacts on people, transport infrastructure and the environment.’’