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Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua floods: Displaced family finally home, seven months later

Katee Shanks
By Katee Shanks
Multimedia journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
28 Nov, 2018 08:13 PM3 mins to read

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Footage of a Rotorua woman evacuated from her flooding home in Ngongotaha.

After seven months without a home, the light at the end of the tunnel has arrived for Rotorua's Heidi Te Are and her family.

April 29, seven months ago today, Te Are was stripping wallpaper in her Western Rd home when she looked out the window and saw the flood waters raging towards her home. Within an hour the residents were evacuated.

The flooding resulted in the declaration of a State of Emergency in Ngongotahā. Schools were closed and residents were left in shock.

Heidi Te Are and her family have built up their house from the ground after it was destroyed in the April flood. Photo / Stephen Parker
Heidi Te Are and her family have built up their house from the ground after it was destroyed in the April flood. Photo / Stephen Parker

It was later discovered, Rotorua had had the wettest hour since records began, with 51.8mm of rain falling between 10am and 11am that Sunday.

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Around the city 94 homes were issued insanitary notices.

The day after the flood, Te Are told the Rotorua Daily Post of her ordeal as she tried to leave her home by wading through waist-deep water with her daughter before deciding it was too deep to cross.

"We waved down the fire brigade yelling out 'hello, hello, can someone please come and get us?'"

The week after the evacuation, Te Are juggled work commitments with stripping their house where they had lived for six years by getting rid of everything that was water damaged in a bid to dry it out quickly.

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The family home is finally done. Photo / Supplied
The family home is finally done. Photo / Supplied

"We had all these people, people we knew, just turn up to help us. We honestly had about 20 people there and we couldn't have done it without them."

On Tuesday the Te Ares were told they needed to send "a few paperwork things" to Rotorua Lakes Council and, once sent, they could finally move home.

"To say we are happy is an absolute understatement," Te Are said.

The seven months between then and now have been bittersweet for the family.

Discover more

New Zealand

'Out of a horror movie': Rotorua wakes to flooding devastation

29 Apr 05:19 PM

Flood-hit family left with metres of water

30 Apr 05:42 AM

Community work day planned for Ngongotahā Stream

20 Sep 02:30 PM
New Zealand

Flooding effects still felt five months on

23 Sep 09:53 PM
Flooding in Rotorua. Cormac Davis, 12, .  Moncur Dr. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Kuirau Park.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Rotorua Boys' High School. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Tony McClaughlin. Moncur dr.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Bryce Morrison. Waikite clubrooms. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Tarewa Rd. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Lake Rd. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Kaylee Browne outside her home on Lake Rd. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Lakefront.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Tarewa Rd.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Te Ngae Rd. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Byron Grove. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding in Rotorua. Kaylee Browne inside her home on Lake Rd. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Pioneer Rd in Ngongotaha.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Pioneer Rd in Ngongotaha. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Pioneer Rd in Ngongotaha. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Western Rd.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Pioneer Rd. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Pioneer Rd.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding at the Agrodome.   Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding at Agrodome. Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Elizabeth St.   Photo/Ben Fraser
Flooding on Elizabeth St.   Photo/Ben Fraser
Savannah Rogers, 11. Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Savannah Rogers, 11. Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Brooke Ellis with her children Lexus Rogers, 8, and Savannah Rogers, 11. Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Elke Semple. Life Pharmacy. Flooding.Photo/Stephen Parker
Civil Defence controller Bruce Horne, Minister of Civil Defence Kris Faafoi and Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick at a press stand up in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Debbie Parry, right and Alison. Flooding in Ngongotaha.  Photo/Stephen Parker
Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Troy Parry. Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Heidi Te Are. Flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Jenny Pollard beside her caravan which had been moved by flooding in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
John Healey's flooded house in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
John Healey's flooded house in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Flooding clean-up in Ngongotaha. Alex Cookson and Glenn Armstrong. Photo/Stephen Parker
Craig Kusabs, left, and Colin Tremain. Tumunui tomo that formed on farmland. The hole on Tumunui South Farm is 200m long and 20m deep. Photo/Stephen Parker
Matt Ward at his property in Paradise Valley. Flooding clean-up. Photo/Stephen Parker-
Colin Tremain, left, and Craig Kusabs. Tumunui tomo that formed on farmland. The hole on Tumunui South Farm is 200m long and 20m deep. Photo/Stephen Parker
Daniel Voss. Flooding clean-up in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker -
Kjell and Rebecca Gudmundsen. Flooding clean-up in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Peter Spencer says this drain should have been clearing water, instead it's where the flood waters came from. Flooding clean-up in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Craig Kusabs, left, and Colin Tremain. Tumunui tomo that formed on farmland. The hole on Tumunui South Farm is 200m long and 20m deep.Photo/Stephen Parker
Flooding clean-up on Brookdale Drive in Ngongotaha. Photo/Stephen Parker
Craig Kusabs, left, and Colin Tremain. Tumunui tomo that formed on farmland. The hole on Tumunui South Farm is 200m long and 20m deep. Photo/ Stephen Parker
Steve Brake says he wouldn't consider living anywhere else.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Miriam Hewson says the family doesn't expect to be back in their Oakland Pl house till summer.  Photo/Ben Fraser
Male lion Xander had a bit of fun in his enclosure's new water feature, leaping to an "island" at Paradise Valley Springs. PHOTO / SUPPLIED
Rotorua Duck Tours help.
Medical Officer of Health for Toi Te Ora Public Health Dr Phil Shoemack, (right), and Acting Civil Defence controller Bruce Horne have delivered a flood recovery update from the Rotorua Lakes Council .

Image 1 of 61: Flooding in Rotorua. Cormac Davis, 12, . Moncur Dr. Photo/Ben Fraser

Late last year her father-in-law retired from his building career to look after his wife who was in ill-health. In March this year her mother-in-law died and in April the flood hit.

"We were able to move into the house next to my father-in-law and it was awesome to be so close to him," Te Are said.

The Te Are family home had to be rebuilt. Photo / Supplied
The Te Are family home had to be rebuilt. Photo / Supplied

"We were also incredibly lucky that he came out of retirement to fix our home.

"It really has been a year from hell but there have also been silver linings."

Prior to Tuesday's code of compliance inspection, the house had already been inspected and failed twice.

The family home is finally done. Photo / Supplied
The family home is finally done. Photo / Supplied

That aside, the family was super excited to be able to finally go home.

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"We've moved most of our things back. Actually pretty much everything to the point I have to come to Ngongotahā to get my clothes and once, even my toothbrush," she laughed.

"Our house is renovated, decorated and insulated. We've got a beautiful place to move back to but one we have worked bloody hard for."

The home is finally finished after seven months. Photo / Supplied
The home is finally finished after seven months. Photo / Supplied

Te Are said the flooding was traumatic and there had been tough times since, but admitted the end result was a good one.

"Yes we lost stuff, stuff I'll never be able to replace. Yes our lives were disrupted. Yes it's been a year from hell.

"But, at the end of the day, we have achieved our five-year house plan in seven months and we have a much nicer home to live in."

All the walls were stripped back. Photo / Supplied
All the walls were stripped back. Photo / Supplied
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