Gisborne residents begin clean up after floods

Rivers have dropped and the water has drained out of most of the affected homes, but has left silt, ruined carpets and interior wreckage in some of the low-lying riverside houses in Gisborne.

Some people have been forced to pack up their possessions and move out until it is safe for them to return.

Beth and Herman Fourie and their three girls will stay at a friend's house while their Fergusson Drive home is repaired.

"We had about 85 millimetres of water through the house. The carpets are going to get ripped out once all our stuff is gone. The walls need cutting as well."

Matt Smith looks at his front lawn with the Waimata river in the background. Photo / Gisborne Herald

Rebecca Watson has been trying to clean up her friend's house in Vogel Street.

"The owner has been overseas. She gave me a call on Monday asking me to check on her house because she was told some Gisborne homes were flooded.

"When I got there the whole downstairs unit was covered in water."

The neighbours were also away and their children, who were still in Gisborne, were not alerted until Monday afternoon.

"One of the sons was using his pump to get the water out of their house.

"It is amazing what they have done. You would not even know there had been a flood through the property. There is hardly any silt left.

"Let us hope there is not too much more rain in the next few days."

Matt Smith had some friends and workers from Bain Construction helping him move furniture and sweep water out of his Graham Road house yesterday.

"It is pretty miserable downstairs. We squeegeed all the water out but there is a lot of work that needs doing.

"We had a whole team of guys with waterblasters, brushes and brooms helping to get it cleaned up," he said.

His wife and kids are staying at a friend's house.

An aerial view of flooding near Gisborne. Photo /Joseph Bagrie

"Painting and redecorating needs to be done. We are covered under insurance which is good."

He had sand bags ready in case there was further flooding in the next few days.

"It looks like the rain will not be as heavy so we should be OK."

People next door were also getting stuck in with the clean-up.

A few tenants and their friends from Slovakia were sweeping water off the property and back into the Waimata River.

The lawn and downstairs rooms are covered in a thick layer of mud and silt and home-owner Anna-Maria Hunt said she was concerned about sewage contamination on her property.

Gisborne Civil Defence emergency manager Louise Bennett said sewage contamination was not an issue.

"The Graham Road pump station in that area went under water but no sewage was discharged. The pump station is designed this way."

She recognised that farmers and homeowners were struggling to cope with the workload and called for Gisborne people to offer their help.

"In true Gisborne spirit it would so good if local sports clubs and service clubs might make some people available to help out.

"Anyone who thinks they might be able to help can contact us and we will steer them in the right direction, where their help is most needed."

"There is considerable damage to home gardens along the city riverbanks and reinstatement work there is something that volunteers could help with."

Manawa Ruru is surrounded by the tonnes and tonnes of wood and rubbish that has landed on the Gisborne City beaches. Photo / Paul Rickard, Gisborne Herald

Further rain is forecast over the next few days - between 50 to 70mm which, although below normal weather watch and warning figures, could cause problems on top of the rain already this week, she said.

"There is a moderate confidence of heavy rain from Gisborne to Wairarapa on Thursday, then a low risk from Friday to Saturday."

Gisborne District Council environmental health and operations staff have visited more than 50 houses and would continue to assess the damage and to advise residents about cleaning and disinfecting properties contaminated by sewage.

Bridge debris finally cleared

Gladstone Road Bridge has finally been cleared of all debris and the major clean-up is in full swing around the district's roading network.

Contractors Fulton Hogan moved their big digger and grapple back on to the main city bridge about 8pm last night.

"The last of the debris was cleared at around 1am today," said Tairawhiti Roads journey manager Helen Harris.

"It was a monumental job for the contractors.

"People who have been around roading here a long time tell me they have not seen anything like the extent of that debris build-up on both sides of the bridge."

Helen Harris said Fulton Hogan handled it "fantastically well".

"They've done a superb job to get it done so fast, especially with further rain coming."

Workers remove logs from the Gladstone Rd bridge. Photo / Gisborne Herald

Fulton Hogan Gisborne branch manager Anita Varga said their staff responded well to the challenge.

"I would like to thank them for their commitment and hard work."

Helen Harris said Tairawhiti Roads acknowledged that there was some traffic congestion on the first day because of the bridge closure.

"We would like to thank people for their patience. That's why we delayed the road closure last night to avoid the same level of congestion."

The last two closed rural roads were opened this morning.

About 20 roads around the region were still under "caution".

SH35 from Tatapouri Hill through to Pouawa was down to one lane in places.

"There are speed restrictions in place as a precaution," Helen Harris said.

"All the contractors are working flat out to clear the roads quickly."

The priorities were assessed yesterday.

"We are working through that priority list as quickly as possible.

"Given the anticipated further rain, we are trying to clear what we can before it arrives."