‘By midnight, we knew we were in trouble’

Bruce Jefferd of Tolaga Bay outside the family home that one year ago was inundated by floodwaters from Cyclone Gabrielle’s landfall.

One year ago, Bruce and Nicki Jefferd found themselves watching the water rise around their farm property on Waiapu Road, Tolaga Bay.

At 3am they self-evacuated, taking as many vehicles as they could and pet labrador Bel to the nearby highest point of State Highway 35.

“It happened pretty fast. We didn’t realise it was going to be quite a flood that night but by midnight we knew we were in trouble,” Nicki said.

The couple own two properties — one on Waiapu Road and the other at Tauwhareparae Road.

They operate a citrus orchard alongside a sheep and beef farm — 550 hectares combined.

Both farms suffered extensive damage; they lost 35 calves and 500 lambs that night.

“We had no idea the flooding was going to be so deep in certain areas that we thought would be OK.”

Four inches of water flooded their home, requiring the replacement of the kitchen, bathroom and all flooring.

Another house on the property was a similar story but with greater water depth.

The ground was already waterlogged from Cyclone Hale earlier in the year.

“It couldn’t take any more,” Bruce said. “Then you add in the huge volume of slash on top of that, blocking culverts and bridges.”

They felt it was probably better the event took place at night, when “you’re less inclined to venture out into the flood, putting yourself in compromised situations”.

Bruce said having gone through Cyclone Bola in 1988 — which was “worse than Gabrielle” — they knew what the flood pattern would be in terms of the house.

A week after the flood, forestry company Ernslaw One contacted them to offer help and was quick to act, cleaning up the “mounds of logs everywhere” on the flats at the Tauwhareparae Road farm.

It also paid for a lot of fencing repairs.

“The amount of damage Gabrielle caused was exacerbated by forestry slash,” Nicki said.

They made good progress in the clean-up with help from volunteers, (mostly other farmers) and family, removing the build-up of silt inside and outside buildings.

“One good aspect is we’ve had more in the way of grants and help than we thought we might,” said Bruce.

This enabled them to get their infrastructure back on track.

So, where are they at now?

Gisborne District Council advised them their house would need to be lifted for future-proofing. Whether a stopbank, a compacted levee aimed at containing the force of rivers and streams during floods to protect the home is an option, the Jefferds are yet to have clarity on.

GDC will put money towards lifting houses to offset the full cost. The second house on the Waiapu Road property was built on concrete. This one is unable to be lifted.  It’s now a question whether that house will be deemed a Category 3 high risk and unsafe to live in. It’s still a waiting game, which is frustrating for the couple.

They acknowledge the road to recovery has been difficult for farmers everywhere, made tougher by higher interest rates and a loss of income over many sectors of the industry including a 30 percent drop in lamb prices compared to 18 months ago.

“Sheep and beef farming is going through tough times at the moment,” Bruce says.

“The floods of last summer certainly didn’t help.”