In shock and awe of nature

In the street where most houses have "turned into matchsticks", Robyn and James Bromley are in awe of the forces of nature.

The tornado that tore through Greymouth on Thursday demolished almost every house on Collins St but left theirs untouched.

On the porch yesterday was the small pile of debris Mrs Bromley had found in her garden, including a rope, a broken ornament and a "small piece of someone's house".

Every house on the other side of the road is wrecked.

Roofs and walls are missing, and contents of bedrooms and kitchens are strewn across their properties.

Insurance bosses say the damage bill will top $10 million, with a total of 45 houses and a dozen businesses destroyed or badly damaged.

But others will be left out of pocket. Blakestown, the suburb first hit by the twister, is a low-income area where many are uninsured.

Grey District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn said that was the "potentially most tragic part".

"But the community is working together to help everyone and I'm sure where there is a will there is a way," he said. No serious injuries were reported, although two people were still in the Grey Hospital yesterday. One woman was injured when the tornado flipped the campervan she was sitting in.

Yesterday dawned fine in Greymouth - in sharp contrast to the strong winds that gusted for several hours after the tornado.

The clean-up was well under way, with friends and neighbours pitching in to help those affected.

"It began almost straight away. That's the good thing about a small community like this," said Peter Smith, whose business building and workshop were mostly destroyed by the twister. He also lost his pride and joy, a $40,000 1997 Camaro convertible, which was "squashed" under a wall.

"Once it was all over I had about 10 people here almost straight away. There were almost too many of us to be co-ordinated and really until the assessors came it was hard to know what to do."

A real estate agent friend has arranged for Mr Smith to use an empty warehouse across the road, and a company he supplies parts for lent him a truck. "It's things like that that make you glad of where you live. We'll survive and this kind of thing is the reason why."

All motels and hotels in Greymouth were still open, and many had fielded calls from people booked to attend the Hokitika Wildfoods Festival this weekend.

* The Government is giving an initial $50,000 to the tornado relief fund while needs are assessed.

Rural Affairs Minister Damien O'Connor and Associate Social Development Minister Rick Barker were in Greymouth yesterday for meetings with council officials.
The Government has indicated that, as with the central North Island floods last year, it will reimburse councils for the cost of repairing critical infrastructure.

Work and Income will also provide labour through Taskforce Green to help with clean-up projects.