Napier Floods: Rain Continues to Fall, Schools Close, After Second Sleepless Night

Sixty people are in emergency shelters, there is still no power and up to three schools remain closed in Napier this morning, as the city remains under water.

The city remains in a state of emergency after the record amount of rain fell on the city on Monday.

Residents of some lower suburbs remain trapped in their homes, and several cars remain stranded amid roads that have turned into lakes.

The emergency services, the Minister of Emergency Services Kiri Allan and the mayor of Napier, Kirsten Wise, have held a press conference to update the situation.

Allan announced a temporary relief fund for the mayor to assist with welfare needs of $ 100,000. A helpline was also established to offer support to struggling residents, he said.

She praised Wise and the volunteers for helping significantly affected families in their “time of need.”

He said that emergency services will continue to assess the needs of the community both from the point of view of well-being and infrastructure.

A fire and emergency spokesman said another 30 people were evacuated overnight to emergency accommodation. That meant some 60 people were in emergency shelters.

During the night more rain had fallen than expected.

A real priority was reaching vulnerable members of the community where the floods were the worst. Access to the area was challenging.

Unimog vehicles were being used to reach people trapped in their homes, he said.

Urban search and rescue teams were currently working on Napier Hill, where 18 houses were deemed uninhabitable. The houses that suffered major damage were all on the hill.

Wise said the mayoral fund would immediately focus on the needs of those who had been forced from their homes.

The fund would allow him to work with the community and identify the greatest needs.

Allan said he would visit local iwi who were providing a response to the whanau affected by the floods.

He said they were in the preliminary stages of assessing the damage and what support was needed.

This morning more than 70 homes are still without electricity.

The Hawke’s Bay Civil Defense Emergency Management Group described the past 12 hours of more rain falling over the drenched region as an “anxious night for many.”

More rain today

MetService meteorologist David Miller said that sadly, the flood-ravaged city could expect more rain today and would not abate until tonight.

The region was under heavy rain with 40-60mm due to today’s fall. While it wasn’t expected to be as much as Monday due to the flooded terrain, Miller cautioned it was likely to create more problems.

Napier residents reported a sleepless night with heavy downpours hitting rooftops and receding water levels starting to rise again.

Three schools in the flooded city remain closed for the second day. Napier Girls’ High School posted this morning on Facebook that it would not be open today, however the library would be open for students who would like to study there.

All major roads in the region are open, but the New Zealand Transport Agency recommends driving under conditions and taking extra care.

Families take refuge

Meanwhile, families who left their homes took refuge in the Kennedy Park evacuation center.

The Wepa family decided to leave their home on Monday night when the water began to rise and almost reached the front door.

There were nine of them in the house, including seven adults and two babies.

“We ran, stressed out, trying to get everything, put everything in garbage bags, [and then] throw it in the truck, “said mother and grandmother, Christina Wepa.

“Trying to get our things and our family into the truck was horrible. The water was up. We were literally waist deep.”

That night, they stayed with their daughters-in-law, 18 in all, huddled together in a three-bedroom house in Flaxmere.

Then, on Tuesday, they were told they could stay at the Kennedy Park evacuation center, where they spent last night.

She praised the Civil Defense for their efforts in providing them with support. But he said that can’t take away how surreal the situation is.

Although grateful for the overnight stay, for many individuals and families, there was still a lot of anxiety about what would come next.

“We don’t have insurance, so we worry that our house will be stolen, that people will know that we are not there,” he said.

“We are sitting here, we cannot drive home because our car [would be] halfway under the water. “

Families who chose to stay at home in the worst affected areas remain effectively trapped, unable to leave without walking through water, which at some points remains waist-deep.

Daygo Ngatai lives with her son at Marewa in Napier South. The water has not reached inside your house, but outside it is not moving on the street.

“We’ll buckle up, watch movies, and eat. Try to block out the rain, because the rain is quite heavy. Have you noticed the raindrops? They are huge!”

She was able to stock up on supplies after her sister picked her up and took her to the supermarket.

To get there, he had to go through water that was going nowhere.

“He’s gone down about 4 inches since this morning, but he hasn’t moved anywhere. And I still know that because every time I go out it’s knee deep.”

Monday night’s deluge also prompted the dramatic rescue of a woman who was trapped in a river of mud.

Chris Brady lives on Main St in Hospital Hill, where authorities are most concerned about the possibility of more slips.

He and a friend rushed to help a woman buried up to her chest in a torrent of mud that had swept through the backyard of a nearby home.

Brady said he couldn’t get through the rushing water coming down the hillside, but his friend, who managed to get around the back of the property, eventually led the woman to safety.

He said it could have turned out a lot worse.

“The lady was obviously in shock when they took her out. There were a couple of small children there, with their parents, and a couple of other tenants. It was a pretty full house and they were all very lucky.”

The city council is now trying to find long-term accommodation for those who will not be able to return home.

– additional RNZ reports