A government inquiry found the regional council lacked a proper plan for managing the river mouth and did not listen to residents who called for action before heavy rain was forecast.
Paul Toothill has lived alongside the river for 30 years and watched in horror as it rose higher than it had at any time.
“People are wild because it was preventable, it should not have happened. There’s been neglect on this river over years, since Cyclone Gabrielle and Cyclone Bola there’s been no work done on this river,” he said.
The river bar is a stretch of gravel at the river opening that builds up and blocks the Wairoa River from flowing out to sea. The regional council is in charge of managing it by digging a channel to open it up when needed.
But when Wairoa’s river swept through hundreds of properties in June, causing about $40 million in damage, the council faced a huge publish backlash for failing to open the bar.
Four reports were released on Wednesday, including a rapid review by former Police Commissioner Mike Bush. It found the council lacked an operational plan for the river bar, didn’t listen to residents, and failed to consider worst-case scenarios early enough.
“I’ll never forget about it in my life because lives could have been lost,” said Toothill.
Among those who wanted quicker action from authorities is contractor Hamish Pryde, who has been digging the river bar for the council for decades. But in this flood, he said the council did not call him until it was too late, and he couldn’t get the river bar open in time.
“The outcome of the reports was pretty predictable from where we were sitting. The important thing now is that we see a pathway forwards. Surely there will be some accountability,” he said.
‘It’s been a struggle’
Dianne Downey is also looking for accountability. Her lime juicing business was ruined in the flood and she is taking legal action against the regional council.
Dianne is hoping the reviews will strengthen her case.
“It certainly helps cement what we were saying from the get-go, I’m hoping it will stack up well behind me in regards to that,” she said.
She is facing a huge bill for everything she has lost.
Dianne Downey, of The Limery, wants the council to be held accountable for what she has lost.
“It’s been a struggle amongst the fact of losing everything else and having to replace everything, It’s put me back probably a good 12 years,” Downey said.
While the town slowly gets back on its feet, Pryde said it was not only the physical damage that needed time to heal.
“The scars are way less visible, but it’s the burden that people carry — that’s the concern,” he said.
Residents are begging the council to act on every recommendation made in all four reviews to avoid any future disasters.
“Please, please don’t ever let it happen again,” Downey said.
‘We’re sorry’
Despite the damage done to homes and businesses, Hawke’s Bay Regional Council chairwoman Hinewai Ormsby would not say if the council would compensate residents.
“We’re sorry that the people of Wairoa are going through yet more adversity particularly in the last 18 months, and what I can do on behalf of myself and council is be committed to insuring that the regional council does everything it can to implement these recommendations,” Ormsby said.
The review made a raft of recommendations for the regional council, such as a new management plan, a long-term contract for regular maintenance and weather-event work, and a better relationship between the regional council and the Wairoa community.
Ormsby said longer-term solutions were needed and opening the bar would not be enough to prevent future flooding.
“But we can’t do that alone, we have to do that in partnership and that’s what locals have been calling out for, is that we work with them for better outcomes for flood mitigation for Wairoa. So we have to embark on that journey in partnership with them, this isn’t just a regional council mission,” she said.
Wairoa District Mayor Craig Little voices his concerns for the future of the highway between Wairoa and Napier. Photo / Warren Buckland.
Wairoa’s mayor has disputed one part of the report that said spring tides, large waves and high swells contributed to the town’s flooding in June
Craig Little said he maintained the flooding never would have happened if the bar had been cleared.
“We’ve got the information now from the right people who do that information, we’re just getting it together, but definitely no spring tides ,so that was absolutely misleading; the high swell and the high waves is very insignificant, but it would be significant if you didn’t have that institutional knowledge and didn’t think that this may have happened before,” Little said.
