Two cars in a ditch after part of Highcliff Rd was swept away from in front of them last night. Photo / Linda Robertson.
Two cars in a ditch after part of Highcliff Rd was swept away from in front of them last night. Photo / Linda Robertson.
The occupants of two cars are very lucky to have escaped without injury after their vehicles dropped into a hole when an Otago Peninsula road collapsed in front of them after dark last night.
Constable Kerry Fegan said the first car came around a corner in Highcliff Rd, between CampRd and Seal Point Rd, about 7pm and ended upside down in the hole after the driver - the only occupant - failed to see the road had ''disappeared from underneath it''.
Another car, carrying two occupants, followed the first car into the hole and ''basically parked on top of them'', Const Fegan said.
The occupants of both cars were ''very lucky'' to have escaped without injury as there was a ''massive drop-off'' only metres from where they both ended up.
He had spoken to the occupants, who were shaken, but otherwise fine.
''There was a little bit of reference to Lotto tickets.''
With the southbound lane and some of the northbound lane taken out, police closed that section of the road last night and it would probably stay ''impassable'' for some time.
Downer crew assist a motorist to recover a car from flood waters under the Burnside overbridge on Wednesday. Photo / Gregor Richardson / Otago Daily Times
Dunedin City Council roading maintenance engineer Peter Standring last night warned people needed to be careful travelling around the city today.
''Motorists ... should expect delays getting to school and work.''
Clean-up after city awash
The city of Dunedin is waking up to water this morning after severe flooding throughout the region last night.
Aerials of flooding in South Dunedin. Photo / Otago Daily Times
Fire Service shift commander Andrew Norris said the teams attended hundreds of call-outs since 12pm yesterday due to the deluge.
The student army and Surf Life Saving Club's water rescue team also mobilised to battle the water with sandbags through the night, he said.
"Often there was very little we could do, it was just a matter of offering advice and reassurance to people.
"We just can't pump out city blocks full of water."
A Green Island resident cleans a drain after heavy rain. Photo / Peter McIntosh / Otago Daily Times
It had been quietening down in the last six hours and people were readying themselves for a day of cleaning up, he said.
Parts of southern Dunedin were the hardest hit - with both commercial and residential buildings going under water.
The Fire Service could help with some of the effort but there was also a burden on insurance companies to hire contractors to get some of the water out, he said.
"Most of it should drain away naturally. However there will be a lot of properties that have basements in low-lying area that it will pond in so they will need some sort of assistance in those areas."
Severe surface flooding and slips have forced a number of main roads in Dunedin to remain closed overnight.Several parts of State Highway 1, Taieri Rd, State Highway 87 and Portobello Rd are included in the closures.
Drivers should use caution and check the list of flooded roads, the New Zealand Transport Agency said.
Auckland roads were also hit hard by heavy rain through the night but no roads were closed.
Stormwater system maintenance up-to-date
Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull says critics blaming the council for poor stormwater drainage systems in the wake of last night's deluge are "wrong".
Mr Cull told TV3's Paul Henry programme this morning the stormwater system maintenance was up to date.
The older parts of Dunedin had been hit the hardest because they were lower lying and had older drainage systems and pipes, he said.
"The simple fact is that the stormwater pipes are not capable and would have never been capable with this amount of rain.
'We have quite a low rain fall by national standards. The problems are in the lowest areas of town and they're also in the oldest areas of town with the oldest infrastructure."
An unknown number of residents were evacuated last night including an entire resthome and more might need to be moved out today, he said.
Most schools were expected to be open.
Teams would go doorknocking around homes in the city to find out more about the damage because the flooding had taken phone lines out, Mr Cull said.
"When daylight comes...we'll be able to see the extent of the damage.
"We'll do a post mortem a bit later and we'll see if there's any lessons going forward into the future."
More rain is expected to hit the city today today with a heavy rain warning in place. Another 30 to 40mm on top of what has already fallen is expected, MetService said.
A full list of the Dunedin roads closed can be found here.
- with additional reporting by Lauren Priestley of NZME. News Service
