Horizons emergency management staff on duty overnight

Published on 13 June 2022

Horizons Regional Council media release

Horizons Regional Council staff will be on duty overnight actively monitoring the storm event being experienced across the region.

Horizons emergency management controller Ged Shirley says some key decisions have been made this afternoon to lessen potential impacts and provide reassurance overnight.

“This afternoon the call was made to deploy the flood barrier at Foxton Beach to help contain the storm surge on Hartley Street,” he says.

“With a high tide expected around 8.30pm this barrier will prevent water flowing down the street. Horowhenua District Council have been assisting with this and a traffic management plan will be in place to enable residents to reach their properties.

“We have also deployed the flood barriers at Kowhai Park in Whanganui as a precautionary measure. While our current modelling doesn’t show the river reaching a height of concern, we aren’t sure what impact storm surge may have and would rather have the barriers in place in case they are necessary in the middle of the night.

“The operation of the Moutoa floodgates in the Horowhenua district is still scheduled for around midnight tonight, and the Makino floodgates in the Manawatū district will remain closed overnight.”

Mr Shirley says there is 40-80 mm rain forecasted for the Tararua Ranges tonight, as well as pockets of short steady bursts of rain expected for parts of the Central Plateau and Manawatū district. 

“In general our rivers have responded well so far, however the catchments are now very full. We can all expect weather similar to what we’ve had over the last 24 hours to continue through the night and into tomorrow morning.

“This will see some of our rivers peak again or hold their peaks for a sustained period. Our duty staff will be keeping a close eye on all rivers overnight in case there is a need for further response.

“Our city and district councils are reporting a lot of surface flooding and power cuts across the region. We recommend people stay indoors as much as possible tonight and take care if having to drive anywhere.”

Up-to-date information on river heights and rainfall is available via Horizons 24 hour toll-free Waterline 0508 4 FLOOD or via our website www.horizons.govt.nz

Updates will also be posted to the Manawatū-Whanganui Civil Defence page: https://www.facebook.com/civildefencemanawatuwhanganui/

For weather forecasting information please see www.metservice.co.nz

ENDS

Cara Hesselin, senior communications advisor, 027 408 7601