Watch: Inside 15-level Lakewood Plaza when water mains broke, tenant splashes in carpet

A tenant in Manukau's Lakewood Plaza filmed inside when the water mains burst and around 500 residents were evacuated this month.

The man's film shows sodden carpets inside his eleventh-floor apartment, him discovering wet clothes in his room and his feet splashing in water throughout his place.

"They're shutting down the whole place, everyone's been told. All the wiring's gone in the whole building, they reckon," the tenant said when he made the film last Sunday.

As he takes the stairs to evacuate the building, alarms can be heard and water can be seen flowing down the internal stairway.

"The whole place is flooded. Don't know where I'm staying the night."

Residents fled Manukau's tallest apartment block last Sunday after the water main burst on level 11 of the 15-storey building near the Southern Motorway.

Some residents of the new building remained out still late last week while repairs are under way.

Du Val Portfolio Management said today it was the building facilities and property management company and understood many occupants were concerned.

It had a team was on-site as soon as it was advised about the situation.

The focus was to ensure resident, contractors and consultants safety.

The mains electricity had to be switched off, activating the emergency lighting in the building, it said.

To help residents to get their things, staff accompanied groups back in, staying on the floors until they returned.

Residents were evacuated from Lakewood Plaza at Manukau last Sunday. Photo / supplied

"With damage limited to a few apartments on the northern end of the building, the majority of residents returned to Lakewood Plaza last week. We have worked closely with the residents who have sought our assistance to secure alternative accommodation options for them," the business said.

Occupants and residents got progress updates and phone calls to keep them up to date.

Lakewood Plaza had specialist body corporate insurance which automatically covered loss of rent for tenanted apartments.

All the residents were told they did not have to pay rent to their landlord for the time they were absent from their apartment, the business aid.

The block was developed around a year ago by Kenyon and Charlotte Clarke's Du Val Group in a joint venture with builder Downey.

Kenyon and Charlotte Clarke of Du Val Group. Photo / supplied

Last month, the Financial Markets Authority Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko told Du Val Group to remove advertising likely to mislead or deceive investors.

Du Val's statements about its mortgage fund breached fair dealing provisions because they gave the impression that the investment was low risk, it said.

"In fact, property development including associated finance is inherently risky," the FMA said then.

Du Val founder Kenyon Clarke told the Herald at the time that the action was over the mortgage fund which had raised around $20 million from wholesale investors: "We have not had a single concern," Clarke said of people in that fund.

Du Val said it would appeal certain aspects of the FMA decision.

Owen Culliney, a Du Val Capital Partners director, said last month the business was "disappointed by the FMA's approach to the use of social media advertising", saying it is out of step with other jurisdictions and modern communication and marketing channels".

Clarke is the chief executive of the business whose website says it has a gross domestic value of $750m