Gale force winds send trampolines flying
Central Hawke’s Bay was pelted with trampolines, tree branches and at least one garden shed as gale force winds battered the region on Tuesday.
Volunteer fire brigades turned out to 11 emergency calls, with Otane attending downed power lines on SH2 at Te Aute, Waipawa called to secure signage and a shed roof in Waipawa, and the Waipukurau brigade logged eight calls to wind-related incidents including a roof lifting at a commercial property in Coughlan Rd and a garden shed that had been blown into Lakeview Kindergarten’s playground.
Trees were down across Farm Rd and State Highway 2, trailers were reported overturned on SH2 and SH50 and many residents have a cleanup ahead of downed trees and branches.
Power was off in many areas as lines were downed or compromised.
As 3pm neared with no sign of the wind abating, all school buses were cancelled due to the risk to flat-sided vehicles, with parents and caregivers having to collect children from their schools.
Waipukurau Volunteer Fire Brigade fire chief Glen Millar says there is a lesson to be learned from the number of callouts.
“Heed the warnings. There was a strong wind warning out well ahead of time. Kiwis can be far too complacent.
“The most prevalent issue we had was trampolines. A large number of tramps went flying and they can go quite a distance once airborne. We attended three callouts for flying trampolines, we secured several more that we saw being blown about and we saw even more that had secured themselves . . . on fences and trees. Basic trampolines can just be tipped upside down to keep them in place in high winds. Others can be tied down.”