Western Bay of Plenty District councillor Allan Sole broke his leg in four places.
A local councillor’s hands-on approach to combating flooding issues at Waihī Beach landed him in hospital with a badly broken leg.
Western Bay councillor Allan Sole, 72, now needs surgery after breaking his left leg in four places while inspecting a suspected malfunctioning drain near elderly housing units hit by flash flooding at Waihī Beach on May 29.
People were trapped by rising floodwaters during the weather event and 50 people were evacuated from their homes, including the 11 elder housing units. Buildings, cars, and roads sustained flood-related damage. The Waihī Beach Surf Lifesaving Club also lost tens of thousands of dollars in damaged equipment.
On Sunday, Sole, who represents the Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s Waihī Beach and Katikati ward, accepted an invitation from residents to inspect a culvert opposite the elder housing on Beach St.
The current owner of the property had requested Sole and other councillors “come and see it and look to get a proper fix for it”.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Sole said he had been wearing gumboots “which probably didn’t grip so well on that sort of surface”.
“It just went away from under me.”
The Waihī Beach volunteer fire brigade and St John ambulance came to Sole’s aid and he was taken to hospital.
“It was awful. I had a lot planned - to check on things and people that day - but didn’t get that far, unfortunately.”
Sole said he was indebted to the first responders.
“I can’t speak highly enough of our fire brigade and what they have done. They never let us down.”
Sole said he felt responsibility as an elected representative Waihī Beach to help flood-affected residents.
Waihī Beach after the floods on May 29. Photo / Alex Cairns
“My job is to help the locals in my constituency, so that’s really it. Otherwise, I can’t be that parochial but what I can do is help them and get them [council] to try to support the community through the flooding issues we have now.
“Waihī Beach is going to be a big fix, no matter what, but we need to see that the current drains are operational - meaning that they are totally clear so people can have confidence in the system,” Sole said.
Flooding at Waihi Beach on May 29. Photo / Susan Lean
Western Bay council chief executive John Holyoake said he was not aware of the culvert Sole was inspecting being reported to the council as a specific concern. However, there was wide concern regarding flooding and the local stormwater infrastructure in general.
On Monday night, the council held a community forum at Waihī Beach which was attended by a couple of hundred residents, Holyoake said.
The community was updated on the council’s plans to better bolster the local infrastructure in light of last month’s weather event.
Holyoake said there were several projects and “some will make a difference” for Waihī Beach in the council’s Long-term Plan for the next few years.
Last month’s flooding was the result of “a phenomenally unusual rain event”, Holyoake said.
“It’s really important for people to understand that all of the infrastructure managed the way it was designed to manage. Nothing failed. It just couldn’t handle it. It wasn’t designed to take that amount of rain in such a short amount of time. Nothing is,” he said.
Holyoak said Sole was a very community-minded councillor who went out by himself with the best intentions. His accident was “really unfortunate”.
“Obviously, our thoughts are with Allan and of course, we don’t want to see anyone getting hurt.”
Western Bay Mayor James Denyer said he also wanted to express his sympathy for Sole, and hoped he got better soon.
Western Bay of Plenty District Council councillor Allan Sole has broken his leg in four places while trying to inspect a culvert in his ward of Waihī Beach. Photo / Alex Cairns
Back at Sole’s hospital bed, steel bracing had been attached to his broken leg while doctors waited for the swelling to go down before he could have surgery.
Despite this, Sole remained in good spirits. He joked on social media that he always wanted a Meccano set, in reference to the steel bracing.
It was not yet clear at this stage how long Sole’s recovery would take.
“My wife and I love to dance. I can’t wait to be able to do that again.”
Kiri Gillespie is an assistant news director and a senior journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, specialising in local politics and city issues. She was a finalist for the Voyager Media Awards Regional Journalist of the Year in 2021.
