A State of Emergency has been declared in the Coromandel.
People are “strongly discouraged” from travelling to the peninsula this weekend as district authorities grapple with unfolding weather-related events such as major slips, flooding and significant sections of highway falling away.
Thames Coromandel District Council said in a statement this afternoon mayor Len Salt declared the State of Emergency at 1.35pm today.
A state of emergency can be declared when there is an event that might cause loss of life or property, which cannot be dealt with by emergency services in the normal fashion.
Salt said: “The reason I have done this is because we have an unfolding situation with vulnerable communities, vulnerable people and an emerging situation where we have the potential for landslips and further erosion that we need to manage.
“The main area affected is the west coast, the Thames Coast, from Ruamahunga northward. By declaring a state of emergency we are empowering our agencies and our emergency support services and our staff to be able to manage this situation in a way that protects property and keeps people safe and out of harm’s way,” Salt said.
The situation is “weather dependent and will depend to some degree on the extent to which the damage that has already been done by water and rainfall continues to make the hills and catchment areas vulnerable to further slips.
“There is some rain expected over the weekend but we’re hoping for some fine weather to settle the situation down to some degree.”
The east coast is less affected and can be accessed from the south, but the situation can change at short notice.
“Most people visiting and most of the residents of Thames-Coromandel District will not be aware there is a state of emergency in place. If you are out and about visiting, please keep up to date with road conditions and take care out there everyone,” Salt said.
During a state of emergency, emergency services are given additional power that will allow them to respond to and manage risk more efficiently. This can include evacuating people from at-risk areas and inspecting and accessing private property to assess or manage risk such as landslips or flooding.
It also means that services have greater and more efficient access to national resources when we need it most.
The council stated on its website that due to the dynamic nature of hazards around the district, “we strongly discourage anyone from travelling around the district unless necessary”.
“Some of our local roads and State Highways are closed due to landslips with the potential for more closures in the coming days.”
Earlier a large slip was blocking State Highway 2 near Matata this morning.
The slip is covering both lanes.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council advised those who live near the Rangitāiki River that the Matahina Dam started spilling overnight.
In a Facebook post, the council said in anticipation of heavy rain it worked with Manawa Energy, who release a controlled amount of water to “lower the dam level in the upper river catchment”.
“We do this to reduce the risk on communities in the lower part of the river, by allowing the water to flow through early in advance of more rain coming in. This also takes the pressure off the flood defences and ensures everything is working together to help protect the community.”
This would result in lower parts of the river running higher than usual for about 12 hours, council said.
Bay of Plenty/Coromandel:
State Highway Closures:
A slip is blocking SH2 near Matata.
SH33 Rotorua to Tauranga open with stop/go traffic managment in place due to a slip.
SH2 Karangahake Gorge: ROAD HAZARD: SLIP between Paeroa and Waihi (Karangahake Gorge) is open to one lane under stop/go management.
SH25 Ruamahunga (Thames Coast Road) CLOSED: Rock fall between Waiomu and Ruamahunga. This will be closed all day as geotech and abseil teams assess the condition of the face. We expect an update this afternoon on estimated opening time; however, clearance works are not expected to begin until this afternoon at the earliest depending on conditions.
SH25a Kopu-Hikuai CLOSED
State Highway Road Hazards and Expected Delays
SH25 Thames to Coromandel Town: DELAYS: There will be stop/go management in various locations with 30kmh temporary speed restrictions in place.
SH25 Coromandel Town to Whitianga: DELAYS: There will be stop/go management in various locations with 30kmh temporary speed restrictions in place.
Western Bay of Plenty roads closed:
Oropi Road 1 lane Bridge from the SH36 end
Oropi Gorge Road between Pyes Pa Road (SH36 ) and Gluepot Road
Te Puke Quarry Road from Reid Road to Rocky Cutting Road
Wairoa Road from the Crawford Road intersection
Old Kaimai Road between #403 and the bridge
Lund Road near #456
Te Puna Station Road
Local Road Closures:
The 309 Road CLOSED - Road is also impassable 11km from the Coromandel Town end due to a large slip.
Tapu-Coroglen Road is CLOSED and impassable for the foreseeable future. Location is 10km from Tapu.
Kennedy Bay Road will be OPEN to one lane (7am – 7pm).
Colville Road - CLOSED due to a slip between Oamaru and Amodeo bay – Road is being assessed by geotech today.
Neavesville Road - CLOSED (Road is impassable at the 4km mark) – Road will remain closed for the foreseeable future.
Te Kouma Road – CLOSED – Large slips continue to come down. Road is expected to remain closed for the majority of the day.
Otamakite Road – CLOSED – Road is impassable from the 4km mark - Road will remain closed for the foreseeable future.
OPEN TO ONE LANE:
Kennedy Bay Road
Tuateawa Road
Port Charles Road
Black Jack Road
Waiomu Valley Road – Flooding at the ford
Victoria Street, Tararu
Port Jackson Rd
OPEN:
Old Maratoto Road – Open
Hikuai Settlement Road – Open
The current situation with ongoing road closures is a creating a lot of stress for many of us. ‘Here to help u’ is available to support people and whānau when things are tough. Providing FREE mental health support, financial and budgeting support, employment support, food support, general support, and much more. It only takes two minutes to request help online so reach out for help if you are finding things tough. See the image below for contact details.
Rotorua:
SH33 Rotorua to Tauranga open with stop/go traffic managment in place due to a slip.
Calls received since previous update yesterday (Thursday)
Work completed yesterday
Work continuing today
Tauranga City Council is cutting 98 jobs to save $12.3 million and reduce rates.