Roading woes

The damage to roads was widespread.

It cost the Southland District Council (SDC) about $2 million to repair its district roads, excluding Lower Hollyford Rd, which was $3.2 million.

Of those, all but three had since been repaired; Lower Hollyford, Ellis and McLean Rds are expected to be completed by June 2021.

SDC strategic transport manager Hartley Hare confirmed 50 roads across Fiordland and Southland managed by the council were compromised by the floods.

The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) contributed $400,000 towards the estimated cost for repairs to Lower Hollyford Rd.

Further works in Ellis Rd were on hold until Environment Southland completed flood protection work.

An NZTA spokesman said in general, state highways, with the exception of State Highway 94, stood up well to the flooding, despite the fact that at one point, the whole Southland region was cut off from the rest of the country.

The Te Anau/Milford

Highway was the worst affected