Unauthorised drainage may be partly to blame for landslip

The houses in Awanui Street, Birkenhead, that are now in danger from slipping. Picture / Dean Purcell

Unauthorised drainage work is suspected to be partly to blame for a landslip that has left a million-dollar North Shore house teetering on a cliff edge after this week's storm.

Tenants of the house grabbed a few possessions yesterday and said goodbye to their "nice spot" while the overseas owners were being contacted by email.

German engineer Karsten Moeckel and his family had rented the $1.2 million home at 15 Awanui St from its UK-based owner for the past six months and were hoping to stay another six, but were forced to evacuate after heavy rain caused the cliff to slip on Monday night.

They were not home at the time, something for which Mr Moeckel was grateful. After grabbing a few toys and some clothes, the family are looking for somewhere else to live.

"It was a nice spot but we are not going to move in again," he said. "Imagine lying awake at night and wondering what might happen? But we are not going to be allowed back anyway."

The Birkenhead house's property manager, Dick Cooper, said he had sent the owners an email recommending they return and make the necessary arrangements. North Shore City Council spokesman Paul O'Brien said the Earthquake Commission was looking at the possibility an illegal stormwater drain discharging over the cliff contributed to the landslip.

"There is some evidence there has been some uncontrolled stormwater discharge which may have contributed to some of these problems," he said.

Staff were fixing the drain yesterday.

Mr O'Brien said further subsidence at number 15 and next door at number 13 could not be ruled out. The house at number 13 was "quite safe" but a garage was at risk. Its owners were in Japan.

Commission engineers were assessing the situation but a decision on whether number 15 was salvageable could only be made by it and the owners.

The cliff and house were unlikely to last. "The answer to the question here is not if it is going to go down, it is when," he said.

Another home at Beach Haven, temporarily evacuated during the storm, has been re-occupied.

MOVING STORMS

* The low pressure that brought heavy rain and thunderstorms to Auckland moved south yesterday.

* Thunderstorms lingered in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.

* Cold southerlies and showers are forecast for Auckland today.

* Storm-force southerly gales are possible about Cook Strait.


- Additional reporting by NZPA


Larking's labour of love damaged

Parts of the Beach Haven groyne, officially named Larking's Landing, dedicated to local identity Frank Larking, were destroyed when torrential rain caused a massive slip from a cliff face. A stone wall and barbecue area collapsed. Fortunately Mr Larking's 1940s long-boat, which is now a public monument, received minimal damage.

The area of council reserve is a tribute to Mr Larking's tireless efforts in maintaining the beach since he and his wife moved to the area in 1949.

Mr Larking dedicated 55 years of his life to the Beach Haven community and is particularly revered for building up the beach. For 10 years he single-handedly rowed his dinghy back and forth to Hobsonville gathering thousands of metres of sand for the beach.

Mr Larking, now 81, suffered a stroke last year and has loss of motor functioning and speech.

Percy Allison, a local historian and long-time friend, released a book about Mr Larking this year. A Man of the People celebrates a man Mr Allen calls "incredible".

- Lee Rowberry