More than 80 people were forced to flee their homes overnight and Fire and Emergency responded to 34 flood-related callouts overnight. Video / NZ Herald
During the 48 hours to about 10.30am on Friday, Dunedin city received 160mm of rain, about 180mm fell in the suburban hills, and nearly 90mm of rain fell in Clutha, Emergency Management Otago said.
She is unable to leave her house, because of flooding at the bottom of her driveway.
“We’re completely flooded, the water’s quite high although it has receded a bit, it’s probably dropped, we reckon about four inches [10cm].
“It’s up into our garage so as you can see, it’s pretty bad, the whole backyard is completely flooded, we can’t shower, can’t flush your toilet, even to brush your teeth, you can’t run the water down the sink because it just comes back up, it doesn’t drain at all.”
“We went and sandbagged the neighbour across the road there and she had some leftover so we chucked them in the truck and so this morning we were driving, checking on another friend ... and dropping a few off to the people around the place who were sort of shouting out for them.
“Everyone’s just chipping in and doing their bit.”
Waikouaiti Coast Community Board member Sonya Billyard said low-lying parts of the town were flooded.
The township was cut off after the NZ Transport Agency closed State Highway 1 south at Evansdale and north as well.
Coast Rd, which links the area to Dunedin via an alternative route, is also closed.
Billyard said it was too early to know how extensive the flooding was.
“Once we, ya know, see the light of day tomorrow, there will be properties that are quite badly damaged. There are a few low-lying areas in Waikouaiti where I know now that properties are under water or some are very close to it and just not going to hold that water off.”
Dunedin City Council is asking residents to evacuate if they need to.
Floodwater at the end of the Hargest Crescent and Albert St intersection in South Dunedin.
St Clair resident told RNZ it was a “scary night” taking turns to check where the water was on their property off Forbury Rd.
Neighbour Bernice Wright said her home was in the firing line if the rain continued to fall.
Forbury Rd runs parallel to Surrey St, where Dunedin Civil Defence and Emergency Management asked residents to evacuate last night before the formal state of emergency declaration.
Wright said she had never seen rain like what had fallen in recent days.
Mud and debris in Macandrew Bay on Dunedin's Otago Peninsula. Photo / George Heard
Last night was frightening, she said.
Surrey St resident Lynn decided to stay in her home despite others evacuating last night.
She told RNZ she did not want to leave her two cats behind, and no flooding was inside her house. If it was to get worse, however, her bags were packed and ready.
Lynn said her garden was flooded.
“It’s been raining heavy, I don’t know what’s happening in the rest of the city apart from what I’m reading on the Facebook pages from the city council.
“They’ve been pretty great this time, this is the third time since I’ve been here, since 2009, that this has happened, and they’ve been really great.
“I’ve had the fire brigade, I’ve had Civil Defence, I’ve had them come and bring sandbags because I couldn’t lift the sandbags, I live by myself, and I’m retired, so they’ve done that, they’ve been really great, really proactive this time.”
But Lynn said the main problem causing flooding near her property was old infrastructure that could not handle the rain.
She did not believe the water would rise as much as it did if the infrastructure was replaced.
“It’s just crazy and it just makes me mad.”
Chris Ford, who lives in a Kāinga Ora property in South Dunedin, did evacuate on Thursday night.
Ford told RNZ there was a dodgy pipe on his property which had caused him the most concern, leading to his decision to take a precautionary step and leave.
He was safe in a motel despite his landlord taking steps to sandbag the property on Thursday.
Ford hoped the pipe would be fixed after this bout of flooding and hoped to return to his home later on Friday or Saturday.
William Priest, who lives on Bayview Rd, said it was not the best night to celebrate his 18th birthday, after heavy rain flooded his backyard overnight, leaving him fearing water would get into his home.
He said water was rising, and as high as the deck.
“We have a deck, and it is almost on the first step already, so eventually it will start going up, which is not a good thing.”
Dunedin residents are describing the flooding and rain in and around the city as devastating and chaotic. Photo / George Heard
Flooding affects farmers
Homes in the small settlement of Toko Mouth, near Milton, south of Dunedin, are surrounded by water and are at risk of flooding as rain continues to fall.
Resident and farmer Simon Davies said they had 130mm of rain in the past 24 hours, and the power was out.
There were about 70 homes in the settlement, Davies said.
He said paddocks were flooded and he was hopeful stock managed to get to higher ground.
Another resident of the settlement, Glenda Wallace, told RNZ roads out were impassable.
At least one tree was down on the road from Milton that ran alongside Tokomairiro River, and the coast road to Kaitangata, although higher, was also flooded and damaged.
Wallace said her house was elevated, although other homes in the settlement had water rising and the nearby creek was “running high and fast”.
She had no power, but a log fire meant she could make tea and toast.
She said she and her neighbours were checking in on each other.
