"[But] it hasn't happened like this before.
"It came in all of sudden, we were caught out.
"We had 30 minutes to get two caravans and the tents out."
The river level reached almost 4 metres high and water flow was speeding along at 350 cubic metres per second at its peak, according to the Greater Wellington Regional Council's river monitor on the Ruamahanga River at Wardells Bridge.
Mrs Harvey said some people had not realised the seriousness of the situation and it became harder to get out of the campsite as the water level rose.
"It was coming up really fast.
"We only just made it out, we got our caravans out in the nick of time and saved a few cars."
Mrs Harvey and her party were the only ones with a four-wheel-drive, so they helped other campers tow their cars out.
"Cars couldn't get through the water."
A housebus had to be left stranded and a tractor was used to rescue some children, she said.
They had also tried to get one woman's caravan out but in the end it had to be tied to a tree.
The situation was tense, said Mrs Harvey, and some people were scared, especially children.
"I felt panicky because people were going too slow.
"They don't realise how quick the water can come up."
Everyone managed to escape, although two people stayed in the housebus with the river raging around it, she said.
Mrs Harvey and her group had their holiday cut short by a week but were hoping it was a clean flood so they could return.
She said setting up camp again was inconvenient but it was more unfortunate for people visiting from outside Wairarapa.
"It's all right for us, we live locally, and we can pick and choose."
The deluge also caused trouble further south, closing the Waihenga Bridge on the main route to Martinborough.
