“Due to some challenges with keeping the road clean and clear through the Awatoto Industrial Zone we are making changes to the cordon before it can be removed completely. The cordon will remain in place until Monday, April 3, with some modifications. This is a different approach than was communicated yesterday,” said the spokesperson.
“Tonight , the cordons at the northern end will move to be a single cordon at the corner of Waitangi Rd and Awatoto Rd. This allows vehicles ease of access through Awatoto Rd.
The spokesperson also said that the vehicle wash at the southern end of Waitangi Rd would cease, and that over the next few days further road cleaning would take place.
“From Monday, April 3, a road closure will be put into the west of the road entrance to BioRich. The controlled cordon at the northern end will be softened to a road barrier.
“The road barriers will be manned during daylight hours and there will be security guards on site through the night. Traffic will be permitted to move in both directions on Waitangi Road from Monday, April 3.”
Over the past month, the council said it had conducted thorough silt, water and air testing in residential areas, with results revealing high levels of E. coli in the silt.
However, they said the results also revealed that chemical testing had “come back without any concerning results”.
Silt on industrial sites is still being tested, and the council said that business owners would need to provide test results to Napier City Council’s Environmental Solutions team before an individualised plan is put in place to remove silt from each business.
This silt had earlier been reported to contain traces of acids, pesticides and caustic agents.
The council also said that on Friday, its dedicated Awatoto Response Team would stand down, and any remaining activities in the area would be carried out by council officers as part of their business-as-usual work. The Awatoto business working group also conducted its last meeting on Wednesday.
Phillips St resident Morgan Peters said while the change in opening conditions was seen by many as a positive, there were still uncertainties around how the new access conditions would work and what the implications would be.
She said the fence by the back of Phillips St would be taken off, allowing the public easy access to uninhabited flood damaged homes and gardens, which had in the past had been subject to looting.
“I know it’s definitely going to lift people’s spirits having the hard cordon gone, but a lot of people are still not sure what the soft cordon means,” she said.
“I guess it’s part of the moving forward process, but it is going to be a slight worry for some people.”
The council said ambient monitoring units would remain in place in the area to ensure dust suppression mechanisms were working as planned, and that this would also be helped by a 15km/h speed limit.
Eastern District Police indicated via a Facebook post that its mobile community recovery hubs were active on Monday and Tuesday .
Police said that they are constantly reviewing the locations of the bases to cater to the needs of the community and would inform the public of any movements.
“At this point there is no confirmation as to any shift in where the mobile bases are, or will be, deployed, but any changes will be well-signalled,” a police spokesperson said.
“It’s important to note that when the bases are re-located, Police will continue to patrol in affected areas.”
