Residents 'work around' setback

Paul Dillon

Every time it rains Paul Dillon has trouble sleeping.

The Lucknow St, Aramoho, house he bought three years ago has been flooded three times in heavy rain.

On Friday night water came into the lowest parts - kitchen, dining room, spare bedroom and laundry - at 2.30am. It got to a depth of about 200mm.

Lucknow St was closed by police, and its lower end was also flooded. Two neighbours had a lot of water in their basement garages. "Terry McKinstry's big flash boat is floating around the shed."

Water was running down Mr Dillon's driveway, and overflowed the creek at the back onto the back lawn.

The bedroom he and his partner use is higher. They haven't left the house, and he said they didn't intend to.

"We've figured out things from the first time. We just work around things. I'm ex-navy so I know how to work around things," he said.

Yesterday the water was pumped out and they threw out $4500 worth of new carpet, it had been down for a month.

Mr Dillon is insured. He blames the Wanganui District Council for the flooding because a council officer signed off the level of the lower parts of his house.