Railway line reopened after slip

A slip that closed the Johnsonville railway line and derailed a train on Saturday has been cleared and services are running as normal, Toll said this morning.

A helicopter with a monsoon bucket worked through Saturday and Sunday removing loose soil that covered the track at the Kaiwharawhara end of Ngaio Gorge, Ontrack spokesman Kevin Ramshaw said.

"It must have come down just as the train was coming because it derailed the front wheels of the leading unit," Mr Ramshaw said.

After overhead power lines were shut off, passengers were evacuated by "rail truck". There were eight people on the train.

At least eight homes were damaged or threatened by landslides in the Wellington region on Saturday after 80-100mm of rain fell between 1am and 3pm, landing on already saturated ground.

Three homes had to be evacuated.

Wellington City Council spokesman David Venables said a flat behind an Aro Valley house was knocked off its foundations about 5am on Saturday and its next door neighbour was also evacuated after mud and debris hot the house.

Two hours later a mudslide forced the evacuation of residents in a Kilbirnie property.

Although slipping threatened the Kilbirne property no debris entered the house.

The Fire Service was also called to pump out several houses affected by floodwaters, as overloaded stormwater drains caused sewerage to overflow.

The Wellington region has been hit by more than 200 major slips this winter.

- NZPA