Village still 'bomb site' after floods

Two months after the February floods, the small Manawatu settlement of Scott's Ferry is still looking like a bomb site.

Piles of rubbish - discarded cars, corrugated iron, old water tanks, damaged appliances and garden foliage - line the main street of the flood-ravaged village as residents move the debris out for the council to collect.

Scott's Ferry resident Chris Rodgers said her home was flooded to about 2m before the waters began to subside.

After five weeks of clearing up, her house is still weeks away from being habitable.

There are no wall linings, no floor coverings and her garden has been devastated.

"We're getting there. We all get together and have a good moan," she said.

Rangitikei District Council recovery manager Peter Duncan said the council would pick up rubbish this week and take it to the landfill.

After that, Scott's Ferry residents would have to get rid of any debris themselves.

- NZPA