Weather: Selwyn homes under threat from rising water levels, Mayor 300km away.
For some, it's too late.
'The neighbours behind us, the water's already in their house,' says Reid.
He says he's aware that there could be worse to come.
'Now that I've put seed bags here from work to try and deflect it - it's starting to work, but there's still a lot more water to come from up the road,' says Reid.
Reid admits he's worried about how bad it could still get for an area that is notorious for flooding, but could be seeing new levels of damage.
'I've been out here all my life and I've never seen it this bad,' said Reid.
Meanwhile, it's understood that Selwyn Mayor Sam Broughton was in Wellington when a State of Emergency was declared in the district early this morning. Broughton heads Local Government New Zealand.
He's now unable to fly back to Christchurch.
Broughton took to social media this morning to declare the State of Emergency.
'Part of the issue is Selwyn Huts and the need for self-evacuation in that area, there's an expectation that that community will be cut off and the river may breach,' said Broughton in a video on the Selwyn District Facebook page.
A number of Selwyn schools have closed for the day, including Ellesmere College, Lincoln High School and Darfield High School.
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Otago Daily Times
2 hours ago
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Flooding processes defended
Selwyn District Council and Environment Canterbury have defended how they responded to the major flooding in the district early last month. Mayor Sam Broughton and Environment Canterbury chair Craig Pauling have told Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell the flooding infrastructure held up, and the processes to manage flooding were up to standard. They were responding to a letter from Mitchell sent to councils across New Zealand asking them to have a 'frank and honest' discussion about responding to flooding. In his letter he highlighted the flooding in Canterbury, where parts of Selwyn and Banks Peninsula were hit hard. "No stopbanks were breached or overtopped, and although drainage schemes were overwhelmed in places, they behaved as expected with water entering known ponding areas,' Broughton and Pauling said in a letter sent to Mitchell. The district saw two months of rainfall fall in about 48 hours, causing a large amount of flooding, particularly around Ellesmere and Tai Tapu. A particular concern among the community was whether Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere could have been opened ahead of the flooding to reduce the impact. Broughton and Pauling told Mitchell even if the lake could have been opened, it would likely have made little difference. 'Unfortunately, sea conditions prior to the event were not favourable, and any opening attempt would have been unsafe and unsuccessful. Had an opening attempt been made a week earlier, it would have closed quickly and likely would have had little effect on water levels during the event.' It was noted in the letter that ECan wants the Government to continue to assist with funding for telemetry to monitor river levels and flows. "To further support upgrades and strengthen resilience, co-funding with central Government has been sought within the Regional Infrastructure Fund to further accelerate our work.' As part of its continued review of the May floods, the district council is paying particular attention to Doyleston, which was one of the worst-hit areas in the district. On Sunday, council staff met with Doyleston residents to get local knowledge of locations that may have contributed to the flooding. Staff said it would use that information to establish the next steps for the settlement.
1News
12-05-2025
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State of Emergency lifted in Banks Peninsula as slip holds
The local State of Emergency on Banks Peninsula has been lifted after monitoring of a slip in Akaroa showed no further significant land movement. Christchurch Mayor Phil Mauger lifted the State of Emergency at 3pm today, saying monitoring equipment at a slip in Akaroa had revealed there had been "no further significant land movement". "With that information, we're now in a position to make a decision on the evacuation zone, begin work on the slip remediation options and lift the State of Emergency." Emergency services were called to Lighthouse Rd on May 1 due to a large crack in the road, with four homes evacuated as a precaution due to risk of slips. The team had been working with property owners and businesses in Akaroa and would continue to do so, said Mauger. "It's been a big two weeks for this community and for the team working on the response, and I'd like to thank everyone for their hard work and patience." Christchurch City Council would keep a close eye on the area as the ground in the area was "still saturated", he added. "A designation has been made under the Building Act on the area, so we can react if needed." Three States of Emergency were declared after the April 30 weather event — in the Selwyn district and Christchurch City and one local declaration in Banks Peninsula. All were now lifted. Christchurch and Banks Peninsula were now both in a recovery period and the focus would be on repairing damaged infrastructure.
Scoop
08-05-2025
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Selwyn Mayor Announced State Of Emergency From Wellington
A decision by the Selwyn mayor to fly to Wellington while his region was under a heavy rain warning has been defended by the council boss. Mayor Sam Broughton announced a state of emergency for his flood-hit region in a social media post on May 1 at 6.30am, from a hotel room in the Capital. Broughton and councillor Elizabeth Mundt flew to Wellington on the afternoon of April 30 for the All of Local Government meeting – a gathering of council and Government representatives. The Metservice had issued an orange rain warning for Canterbury on the morning of April 30. Locals have expressed anger on social media that Broughton was not in Selwyn during the emergency. Selwyn District Council chief executive Sharon Mason defended the decision for Broughton – who is the Local Government NZ president – to attend the event. 'We had been watching the weather forecasts all week, and the advice was that the bulk of the rain would fall in Waimakariri, Hurunui, and Kaikōura, and it was okay to travel,' Mason said. As the weather changed, Mason said she discussed with Broughton that it was better for her to remain in Selwyn. 'Sam stayed updated on developments from the team that evening and early Thursday morning when the decision was made to declare a state of emergency,' Mason said. 'As it became clear that the predicted rain was falling further south than anticipated by both MetService and ECan [Canterbury's regional council] Flood Controllers, every effort was made to ensure smooth communication, and Cr Sophie Innes was deputised with the powers associated with the state of emergency. The stormy weather in Wellington cancelled all flights in and out of the Capital, so the mayor drove to Palmerston North to catch a flight back on the afternoon of May 1, she said. The state of emergency was lifted at 3pm on Friday. On his return, Broughton travelled in a helicopter with Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mithcell, MP Vanessa Weenink members of the civil defence team. Mason said it 'provided a clear view of the hardest-hit areas and an overview of where swollen rivers and streams had overflowed'. 'This was also an opportunity to explain to Minister Mitchell the dynamics of Te Waihora, particularly the importance of the lake's water level and the right tidal conditions for an effective opening.' A week later, the district is still counting the cost of the heavy rainfall and flooding, but Mason said it was too early to estimate the cost of recovery. Mason said the focus is on supporting people who had homes and properties affected by flooding. The council was also assessing the damage to roads and bridges. Broughton said the goal is always to prepare early, communicate clearly, open the Emergency Operations Centre promptly, and take a precautionary approach. 'While I believe we did these things well, there will always be room for improvement. 'I am incredibly proud and thankful for the hard work of our teams, our emergency services, and the great work neighbours did with and for each other.' The hardest hit areas were around Te Waihora Lake Ellesmere, including the towns of Leeston and Doyleston, which suffered severe surface flooding. There was some criticism that Te Wiahora Lake Ellesmere could have been opened to the sea sooner to avoid the water flowing down the bulging Selwyn River from backing up and causing surface flooding. ECan hazards general manager Leigh Griffiths said it was supposed to be opened before the heavy rain, but an opening wasn't possible. 'We didn't attempt an opening at that time because of the sea conditions – the swell was too large, so we were confident any attempts at opening wouldn't succeed.' The lake opening is jointly managed by Ngāi Tahu and ECan, and governed by the National Water Conservation Order and suite of Resource Consents. Griffiths said consultation for a lake opening started on April 28, and a joint decision was made to open late on April 29, with the heavy rain starting on May 1. An opening was made on May 3, but the tide and waves closed it up again overnight, Griffiths said. The lake was successfully opened to the sea again on Monday and remained open for 24 hours. 'Sea conditions are currently good. Machinery remains onsite to help the process along.' The cost of each opening ranges from $20,000 to $150,000, depending on the amount of work.
