Thunderstorms lash Rotorua: Women rescued after car strands in waist-deep water, 50mm falls in two hours

Motorists were stranded in waist-deep water, a road was damaged and a “creek” sprang up in a private yard as heavy rain caused flash flooding in more than 30 Rotorua streets.

And, while a severe thunderstorm watch has been lifted for the Bay of Plenty tonight, there is a chance of more thunderstorms on Wednesday.

MetService recorded 65.4mm of rain in Rotorua between 11am and 5pm with heavy downpours in the afternoon - 29.8mm lashing the city between 2pm and 3pm and 20mm in the hour before.

There were also 157 lightning strikes across the Bay of Plenty in the six hours to 3pm.

Rotorua woman Kelly Albrecht was returning home from Christmas shopping with her children, Tyla, 13, Amber, 11, and Declan, 11, when they came across two women stranded in a car surrounded by water on Malfroy Rd, near Westbrook Place.

Albrecht waded into the waist-deep water to see if they were okay. She said the driver did not speak much English and an elderly woman was in the passenger seat.

“The woman driving went to get out of her car because she was freaking out and didn’t know what to do so I told her to close the door and put down the window and I talked to her through there.

“I told her to put her car in drive, turn [her] car back on, take [her] foot off the brake and let us push you.”

Albrecht said they pushed the car up the hill out of the flooding about 100m.

“She kept saying saying ‘thank you, thank you, I don’t know what to do’.”

Malfroy Rd in Rotorua this afternoon. Photo / Kelly Makiha

She said the woman was so grateful, she gave them a $50 note.

“I tried giving it back but she dropped it in the water so I went for another swim.”

Albrecht said they got cones from the nearby service station and blocked off Malfroy Rd.

Otonga Rd resident Annie Wells said a rain gauge on her property recorded 90mm of rain between midday and 4pm.

“I wasn’t sure I was reading it right at first. That’s quite a bit of water in a short period of time.”

Hyrum Paki was driving along Ranolf St to pick up his son when he saw parts of the road had collapsed.

“I saw water bursting out of the manhole as I was driving and thought nothing of it until I kept driving and noticed bits of the road all pushed up and parts of the road looked like it collapsed in. I had to drive around carefully to avoid my car falling in.”

Rotorua Lakes Council later confirmed the closure of part of Ranolf St because a burst water main damaged the road surface.

“Rotorua Airport has recorded approximately 27mm of rain between midday and 3.13pm today and council’s contractors have reported significant heavy rainfalls across the Rotorua district,” it said online.

“The rain is currently predicted to clear this evening but a severe thunderstorm watch remains in force for Rotorua and other parts of the North Island.”

Flooding had been reported across the city and at Rotoiti and Rotoma.

The council received calls about flooding on more than 30 streets. These were referred to roading contractors.

Pensioner Julie Kerem called the Rotorua Daily Post because her Glenholme yard was flooding.

“It’s like a creek running down the side of my unit.”

She said the water was approaching her back and front doors and she was afraid it could breach.

“It’s come right up to the back door, and I’ve got to put towels down to stop it.”

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokeswoman said it received 31 flood-related callouts across Rotorua, Tauranga and Hamilton between 10am and 4pm.

In the six hours before 3pm, MetService recorded 157 lightning strikes across the Bay of Plenty and 3462 across the whole North Island.

MetService meteorologist Peter Little said the Western Bay of Plenty had an average of 20mm of rain an hour since the early hours of Tuesday.

“We’ve had an active area of thunderstorms move over the area caused by meeting winds,” Little said.

“There is a line of thunderstorms stretching down from the Coromandel. It’s been quite consistent.”

Little said tomorrow would be “similar”.

Read More

• Weather: Where’s summer? More heavy rain, thunderstorms ...
• Weather: Heavy rain watch, thunderstorms for Bay of ...
• Weather: Heavy rain warnings in place for Bay of Plenty ...
• Weather: Heavy rain watch for Bay of Plenty...

“However, we’re not expecting there to be quite as many active thunderstorms. It’s a little bit more stable with a few showers developing.

“There’s still a chance of thunderstorms, but we’re not expecting the same sort of activity as today.”

A Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency spokesperson said drivers must be prepared for wet weather and hazardous driving conditions.

“Localised flooding and slips are a possibility across the regional state highway network,” the spokesperson said.

“Road users should drive to the conditions, watch their speed and following distances and use their headlights when visibility is bad.

“People should also check road conditions and make sure routes are open before they travel.”

Flooding on Lake Rd caused by Tuesday afternoon thunderstorms. Photo / Laura Smith

Calls about flooding received by Rotorua Lakes Council and referred to roading contractors:

• Totara/Ranolf St
• Old Taupo Rd
• Edmund Rd
• Malfroy Rd
• Ruhikaka St
• Carlton St
• Vaughan Rd
• Hoyte Pl
• Miller St
• Lake Rd
• Victoria/Ranolf St
• Puriri St
• Depot St
• Sunset Rd
• Westbrook St
• Goodwin Ave
• Devon/Hunt St
• Phillip St
• Whakatau St
• Toru St
• Petrie St
• Ruby St
• Hathor St
• Eruera St
• Amohia St
• Kauri St
• Pukuatua St
• Lytton St
• Totara St
• Holland St
• Wrigley Rd
• York St
• Wallace Cres
• Haupapa St
• Ford Rd, multiple locations
• Kaharoa Rd

Other calls being dealt with by roading crews:

• Tarawera Rd, near Green Lake – Debris and water washing across the road
• Unsworth Rd – Debris has washed onto the road from a driveway
• Wallace/Ranolf – Stormwater issue, crew investigating