More torrential rain Wednesday morning brought more flooding to Auckland residents, with many saying they have had enough and want the Council to take accountability. Video / NZ Herald
Heidi Oudemans breathed a sigh of disdain on Saturday, watching rain begin to pour outside her home and knowing exactly what would follow.
For over a decade, Oudemans has watched floodwaters rise outside her Christchurch home and trap her and 40 other homes on her street potentially for days on end.
It happens every single time it rains and the locals have had enough.
Oudemans lives on Tenby Pl, a short no-exit suburban road in Avondale which backs onto a local intermediate school and is located just off the bustling Wainoni Rd.
Heidi Oudemans watched rain begin to pour outside her home on Saturday and knew exactly what would follow. Photo / Supplied
“If it doesn’t stop raining for a day or two, it becomes Lake Michigan out there,” Oudemans told the Herald.
“It’s horrible, nobody can get out and nobody can get in.”
The street has always been low-lying and before the 2011 earthquake, the ground would get soft and wet whenever rain fell. Ever since the quake, rainfall has caused the nearby Avon River to rise and with nowhere to go, water will rise in surrounding streets.
Residents have told the Herald council workers cleared three nearby drains last week, something which “hadn’t been done for ages” according to one local.
Despite this work, ongoing drainage issues are understood to still be creating flood issues.
“Last night, I looked out my bedroom window and there was a great puddle there that wasn’t there before, it just gets worse and worse,” said Oudemans.
Residents say council workers cleared three nearby drains last week, something which one local says 'hadn’t been done for ages'. Photo / Supplied
A number of elderly residents live on Tenby Pl, one woman in her 80s has been forced to ask her grandson for support every time downpours occur as her vintage car can’t get through the waters.
Another resident, who runs a mechanics business out of his garage has to park cars on different streets in case of rainfall causing flooding and damaging his client’s vehicles.
The Herald also understands that an elderly resident called an ambulance on one occasion - only for flooding to stop the emergency vehicle from reaching her home.
Six months ago, Oudemans bought a four-wheel-drive vehicle as their previous family car wasn’t capable of treading through the water levels.
“Most of us have had to buy one,” she said, referring to her neighbours.
“We can’t get out any other way. We came back from a weekend down south one time and our car was stuck at the letterbox, we had to leave it until the rain resided.”
Floodwaters will typically rise to knee height, Oudemans said she can’t cross her street in gumboots without getting wet feet.
Oudemans bought a four-wheel-drive vehicle as their previous family car wasn’t capable of treading through the water levels. Photo / Supplied
Last week saw floodwaters remain for four days straight as the rain continued to fall, it was 20 hours later before anyone could get their cars out of their driveways.
Elizabeth Forbes lives on the corner of Tenby Pl, she said the flooding gets “deceptively deep” when the water has nowhere to go.
She would sometimes park her car on a neighbouring road to avoid a waterlogged, soggy commute.
“It’s ridiculous really,” said Forbes.
“Now I’ve got things I’d like to do, but they get put on hold because you just can’t get anywhere.”
The suburb’s city councillor, Kelly Barber, was first made aware of the issue shortly after he was elected to office in October last year. He recently made a trek down to street after being alerted to the latest flooding episode.
A Christchurch City Council meeting on Wednesday will see a report on surface flooding in the city presented by staff. Photo / Christchurch City Council
“I couldn’t believe it - I was gobsmacked,” he said.
Barber arranged for a public meeting to be held a month ago, where roughly 15 residents attended and spoke to a Three Waters official about their frustrations around the lack of action.
According to the councillor, council staff later told the residents they had been aware of the issue earlier on, which Barber said doesn’t alter the fact there’s been no adequate change.
“Even before the earthquakes, it was still a problem,” he said.
“Parts of Christchurch dropped by half a metre or so after the quakes, so water drainage is more frequently affected because of the combination of rainfall plus high tide. And people can’t live like that.”
Thirty-five residents of Tenby Pl and nearby Newport St - which also floods - have formed a community group called NTAG, the Newport and Tenby Action Group.
They will make their case at a Christchurch City Council meeting on Wednesday, where a report on surface flooding in the city will be presented by staff.
