A main Auckland sewer line has collapsed causing a massive sinkhole to open up, with wastewater overflow pouring into the harbour and closing the city’s beaches.
Video / NZHerald
A main Auckland sewer line has collapsed, causing a massive tomo (sinkhole) to open up, with wastewater overflow pouring into the harbour and closing the city’s beaches.
The 13-metre-deep hole descends to a 2.1m-wide collapsed brick pipe below a private property on St Georges Bay Rd in Parnell that serves Central Auckland and West Auckland.
The shinkhole in Parnell is the size of a tennis court, says Deputy Mayor and Ōrākei councillor Desley Simpson.
Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson has described the sinkhole as “the size of a tennis court”, saying the damage is the result of severe weather and lots of rain.
“The damage we see is the result of saturated grounds over a long period of time sadly, especially in older parts of the city. Huge thanks to the Watercare team who are on site doing all they can to remediate this ASAP. I was down there this morning,” she said on social media.
In a video posted by Simpson, a Watercare worker called Joel said work is under way to try to stabilise the tomo, which is quite a difficult job because of how deep it is.
Once the hole is filled and the banks are stabilised, repair work will be facilitated and take some weeks, and the longer-term outcomes will take months, he said.
The Watercare worker said, at the moment, huge impacts for locals flushing toilets and sewage are not being seen, but there is potential for problems if the work is not got on top of.
Repair work on a sinkhole on St Georges Bay Road, Parnell. Photo / Dean Purcell
Parnell Business Association general manager Cheryl Adamson said the collapsed pipe “comes as no surprise”, saying overflowing sewage has plagued properties for years.
“Watercare’s inability to address a number of issues our businesses have had, some dating back to 2021, has us all very concerned,” Adamson said.
“Business owners have suffered enough. Businesses in Watt St had sewage water into their premises earlier this year. Along The Strand, certain businesses who have relocated back after the January floods complain about unpleasant smells in their bathrooms after heavy downpours,” she said.
“We’ve been calling on a resolution for a long time, with this collapsed pipe being one of many signs that the water infrastructure systems in Parnell are in dire need of support.”
Watercare’s chief operations officer Mark Bourne said the blockage may be causing sewage overflows around the network.
“We... are urging Aucklanders to avoid swimming, fishing and recreational activity in the Waitematā Harbour. Warning signs are being erected at all inner-city beaches.
Safeswim’s website shows all beaches west of Mission Bay in Auckland are closed. Photo / Safeswim
“We have raised black water quality pins on Safeswim.”
Safeswim’s website shows all beaches west of St Heliers are closed, affecting some of the city’s most popular beaches during the spring school holidays.
“A wastewater overflow has been detected in the area[s],” a notice on the website reads.
Bourne said the ground around the sinkhole was unstable. Watercare has cordoned off the area to keep people safe.
Watercare took “immediate steps” to address the collapse yesterday, Bourne said. It first heard about the sinkhole on Monday afternoon.
A brick pipe below St Georges Bay Rd in Parnell has collapsed. Photo / Dean Purcell
Watercare has sought advice from geotechnical engineers on how to deal with the collapse.
“Our crews worked until early this morning, removing material to strategically widen the tomo [sinkhole], stabilising the ground and preventing further material entering the pipe,” Bourne said.
A main Auckland sewer line has collapsed, causing a massive sinkhole to open up, with wastewater overflow pouring into the harbour and closing the city’s beaches. Photo / Dean Purcell
“Unfortunately, the situation has worsened with the sewer becoming completely blocked this morning, which may be causing overflows elsewhere in the network.
“Our crews on site are currently working with a large excavator to further widen the top of the [sinkhole] to remove the debris causing the blockage.”
Bourne said work repairing the pipe would get underway once the blockage has been cleared.
Mayor Wayne Brown said the sinkhole was the result of decades of underinvestment in infrastructure by previous councils and Governments and now it is really showing up.
“What it tells you is the pressure is on to keep going with that staff(separating old mixed sewer and stormwater pipes). We don’t have time to sit round and say ‘where’s the money going to come from’, we have just got to do it,” he said.
Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.
