The swollen banks of Karamu Stream have crept up into the Golflands golf course and have not subsided for several days. Photo / Paul Taylor
The swollen banks of Karamu Stream have crept up into the Golflands golf course and have not subsided for several days. Photo / Paul Taylor
A new temporary water feature on the seventh hole of the Golflands Karamu Golf Club near Karamu Stream in Hastings is a lingering reminder of the deluge from only a few days ago.
Owner John Duncan is still hopeful that the floodwaters will reside soon after they have hung aroundlonger than expected.
Waterways across Hawke’s Bay are running at higher levels than normal after rain exceeding 100mm over 24 hours in many parts of the region over the weekend, with some flooding the surrounding areas.
Duncan said that the flooding was not a huge concern but the stream normally drained back down to a normal level a lot more quickly when it flooded.
He said golfers were still able to play on the course.
“We just have to warn them that the number seven hole isn’t as playable as normal.”
The water level of Karamu Stream rose from about 12.060 metres on Friday evening to a peak of around 12.940m on Sunday morning according to Hawke’s Bay Regional council monitoring data from an environmental monitoring station at the Karamu Stream floodgates.
The water level of the stream has since gradually diminished to about 12.735m as of Tuesday, still notably higher than before the rain.
Karewarewa Stream swollen from the rain, as seen from the Raukawa Rd bridge near Bridge Pa on Tuesday. Photo / Paul Taylor
MetService meteorologist John Law said most of the heavy rain for the country lies to the north and west of Hawke’s Bay.
“At the moment it is looking like scattered rain and showers for Hawke’s Bay,” he said.
“That won’t be changing until the weekend at least.”
He said it would most likely not be enough to cause river or surface flooding.
He said muggier weather is likely to stay for a while longer, with daytime temperatures in Napier and Hastings hovering around 24C on Wednesday and reaching 27C on Thursday onwards.
He said night-time temperatures could make it hard to sleep too, reaching 19C in Napier, well above the average 14C for this time of year.
Hawke’s Bay Regional Council principal engineer Craig Goodier said river levels had receded over the past day, and they do not anticipate any flooding issues in the coming days.
“There is no immediate risk. Normal operating procedures are in place. The public should continue to listen to media for any change in situation and stay away from flood waters.”
