Coromandel weather: Schools closed and power lost as storm batters peninsula

Flooding on Te Kouma Bay Rd in the Coromandel. Photo / Supplied

Schools and roads are closed, power has been lost and a major wastewater pump station has been damaged in the wild weather hitting the Coromandel.

Meanwhile, an in-home support worker was trying to decide whether or not to cross the road of gushing water to get to her client who needed her on Te Kouma Bay Rd.

A paediatric occupational therapist also had to reschedule all nine of her patients today due to the weather.

The Thames-Coromandel District Council reported 102mm of rain fell in eight hours, with gusty northeast winds.

MetService said there is more to come as it issued an orange heavy rain warning for the Coromandel Peninsula from 7am to 8pm, with an anticipated 50 to 80mm of rain on top of what has already fallen, possibly more in localised areas, with the largest accumulations likely in the ranges.

Peak rainfall rates of 15 to 25mm per hour are to be expected, possibly more in localised downpours.

It warned that heavy rain may cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly, surface flooding and slips are also possible, and driving conditions may be hazardous.

There is also a strong wind watch for the Coromandel Peninsula, and Waikato just west of the Kaimai Range until 3pm where east to southeast winds may approach severe gale in exposed places.

Southeast winds may approach severe gale in exposed places in the Bay of Plenty, southeast of Whakatāne from 1pm to 6am tomorrow.

The Thames-Coromandel District Council is urging all Whitianga residents to reduce their wastewater “immediately” after a failure to one of the major wastewater pump stations south of Whitianga, it said in a statement.

A slip at Te Kouma Hill, Coromandel. Photo / Supplied

This included toilet flushing, running dishwashers, washing machines and showers until it was able to get the pump station operating again.

It said it was getting teams to repair it as soon as possible and would inform the public when repairs were completed.

A notice to conserve water in Hahei and Coromandel township was issued later this morning.

The council said it was unable to run the Haheu Water Treatment Plant due to an electrical fault on the bore pump, and it was unable to pump raw water to the Coromandel Town Water Treatment Plant due to “major flooding” at the Waiou water intake.

Both instances meant the water in the reservoirs could not be treated and refilled.

The council said the reservoirs were currently at acceptable levels, but it would continue to drop until it could restart the water treatment plants and refill them.

It asked locals to avoid showers, washing clothes and minimising toilet flushing until further notice.

According to Powerco, there are 146 properties without power in Whangamatā, with the council reporting the number had reached over 5000 properties in Whitianga and Hikuai earlier this morning.

Road closures

Victoria St in Thames is closed 800m from the start of the road after heavy rain overnight caused a slip blocking both lanes. While the slip has been cleared, the ford is still impassable, the council said in a statement.

A crew was heading there to begin clearance work, and the road was expected to remain closed until at least midday.

The 309 Rd remains closed due to flooding, flood damage, and a large slip blocking the road 0.5km and 9km from the Coromandel end, and is expected to remain closed for most of the day.

Tyl’a Waetford-McGrath is a paediatric occupational therapist and had to reschedule all nine of her patients today due to the weather.

She was on her way to Thames from Whitianga as she runs an outpatient clinic at Thames Hospital.

She made it over the hill from Whitianga to Coromandel with no problems but was stopped by multiple slips covering half of the road and surface flooding on every corner as she started up the Te Kouma hill.

“I made my way over the hill having to cross the midline at every slip,” she said.

“I made it to Manaia where I was met by a massive flooded area where I knew I couldn’t get through.”

She turned around and headed back to the Coromandel and rescheduled all nine of today’s patients.

Meanwhile, Kylie Corston-Blanche sat in her car for minutes before deciding to cross the water gushing across Te Kouma Bay Rd on the western side of the peninsula, south of Coromandel.

Corston-Blanche is an in-home support worker and said her thoughts were mainly on getting to her client, who needed her.

She has worked in the area for 20 months and has “never” seen the road in this state.

According to Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency, State Highway 25 south of Whitianga is closed by the intersection with Wade Rd due to flooding.

The transport agency also said that SH25 is closed by Manaia Bridge due to flooding.

Flooding on Te Kouma Bay Rd in the Coromandel. Photo / Supplied

Cordons are being established and drivers are asked to avoid the areas.

There are reports of a slip partially blocking the same stretch of highway between Te Kouma and Manaia and drivers are asked to follow directions of response crews, and consider delaying travel or expect delays.

Mercury Bay and Whenuakite schools are closed for the day due to the weather and associated safety risks, it said.

Cira Olivier is a social issues and breaking news reporter for NZME Bay of Plenty. She has been a journalist since 2019.