Flood-affected farmers on verge of exhaustion

1.00pm

Some of the farmers worst affected by the Rangitaiki Plains flooding are close to physical and mental exhaustion, New Zealand Dairy Farmers says.

Catherine Bull, chairwoman of the organisation's Bay of Plenty branch, said the stress of the floods was taking its toll.

"You can see that grey look in some of their faces," she said.

Two women died and thousands of people were moved from their properties as a result of the weekend flooding and earthquakes.

On top of more than 250mm of rainfall in the towns of Whakatane, Opotiki and Edgecumbe on Saturday and Sunday, the area was hit by a swarm of more than 200 earthquakes, which added to slips and other flood damage.

Federated Farmers, Fonterra, Livestock Improvement Corporation and individuals have formed a support group helping farmers with decision making.

Farmer groups in the Manawatu were also offering advice after their experiences with floods in February.

Stock was being sent to farms in Waikato and the Rotorua and Taupo areas for grazing, but Ms Bull said farmers recognised that feed in all areas was at a premium, with supplies being nursed through until full pasture growth starts again in September.

Meanwhile, work continues in the area to build an accessway to a breach in the eastern stopbank of the Rangitaiki River.

Environment Bay of Plenty spokesman Bruce Fraser said it was hoped to be able to start filling the Rangitaiki River stopbank breach -- thought to be about 100m wide and 5m deep -- with rocks by about 9am today.

The breach was expected to take days to fill, he said.

Water levels in the Rangitaiki River were dropping slowly with the river now 3.6m high, down from a peak of 6.3m.

The water going through the breach was being contained in an area between the river and an overflow spillway called the Reid central canal, Mr Fraser said.

The corridor between the river and the spillway was between 500m and 2km wide.

Floodwaters were pouring into the canal through a cut made in its western bank yesterday. The canal joined up with the river downstream.

- DAILY POST (ROTORUA), NZPA