'Millions of dollars' of flood damage in Nelson-Tasman region revealed
Flooded communities in the Nelson-Tasman region remain cut off tonight as the full extent of the clean-up becomes clearer across the top of the South Island.
Farmland in Tapawera, 75 kilometres southwest of Nelson, was still submerged following the torrential rain across the region, with a boil water notice in place, and a warning to treat all water as contaminated.
The rain has eased for now, and roads are slowly beginning to reopen.
Flattened fences with heavy debris show the power of the water which rushed onto one Tapawera farm.
Its owner, Dion McGaveston, said he has never seen anything like it.
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"It was raging through here taking a few fences down. It just got worse and worse."
Helpless to stop it, he captured his precious pasture being consumed by a muddy torrent of water.
Resident Raine Turner said she got a "bang" on her door from neighbours who were "shaking and terrified" and told her "oh my god we're flooded".
The streets were left coated in mud, and from above, officials saw just how extensive the damage was.
They flew over the area where a man lost his life while clearing some of the flooding damage. 1News understands he was Peter Lines, a stalwart of the Wakefield community and the New Zealand hop industry.
Minister for Emergency Management Mark Mitchell said the man was a "prominent and respected person in their community", and that his death will be "reverberating through the community".
Far more water had come down than anyone expected. One farmer told 1News he had warned the council a year ago the stop bank would fail, but remedial work was yet to start.
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'Millions of dollars worth of damage'
Nelson Mayor Nick Smith said there had been millions of dollars worth of damage to roads, bridges, fences, farm buildings, hop gardens, orchards, and the Great Taste cycleway.
"The worst areas are Wai-iti, Tapawera, Motueka Valley, Kohatu, Motupiko, Pretty Bridge Valley and Tadmor."
Forty-seven local roads were closed with progress in reopening being made, while the damage to State Highway 6 south of the Kohatu bridge was "extensive" where the Motueka River overran it and would require a "major fix", he said.
"The State of Emergency in Nelson and Tasman will remain in place till at least Thursday when we are expecting another front with about 200mm of rain. The greatest risk is further slipping on sodden hills."
Smith also acknowledged Lines' death, saying "Our love goes out to Peter's wife, family and the Wakefield community at this very difficult time."
Civil Defence controller Alec Louverdis said they were planning for the "worst case scenario".
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"It's not good news with everything so wet and inundated."
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1News
18 hours ago
- 1News
'Millions of dollars' of flood damage in Nelson-Tasman region revealed
Flooded communities in the Nelson-Tasman region remain cut off tonight as the full extent of the clean-up becomes clearer across the top of the South Island. Farmland in Tapawera, 75 kilometres southwest of Nelson, was still submerged following the torrential rain across the region, with a boil water notice in place, and a warning to treat all water as contaminated. The rain has eased for now, and roads are slowly beginning to reopen. Flattened fences with heavy debris show the power of the water which rushed onto one Tapawera farm. Its owner, Dion McGaveston, said he has never seen anything like it. ADVERTISEMENT "It was raging through here taking a few fences down. It just got worse and worse." Helpless to stop it, he captured his precious pasture being consumed by a muddy torrent of water. Resident Raine Turner said she got a "bang" on her door from neighbours who were "shaking and terrified" and told her "oh my god we're flooded". The streets were left coated in mud, and from above, officials saw just how extensive the damage was. They flew over the area where a man lost his life while clearing some of the flooding damage. 1News understands he was Peter Lines, a stalwart of the Wakefield community and the New Zealand hop industry. Minister for Emergency Management Mark Mitchell said the man was a "prominent and respected person in their community", and that his death will be "reverberating through the community". Far more water had come down than anyone expected. One farmer told 1News he had warned the council a year ago the stop bank would fail, but remedial work was yet to start. ADVERTISEMENT 'Millions of dollars worth of damage' Nelson Mayor Nick Smith said there had been millions of dollars worth of damage to roads, bridges, fences, farm buildings, hop gardens, orchards, and the Great Taste cycleway. "The worst areas are Wai-iti, Tapawera, Motueka Valley, Kohatu, Motupiko, Pretty Bridge Valley and Tadmor." Forty-seven local roads were closed with progress in reopening being made, while the damage to State Highway 6 south of the Kohatu bridge was "extensive" where the Motueka River overran it and would require a "major fix", he said. "The State of Emergency in Nelson and Tasman will remain in place till at least Thursday when we are expecting another front with about 200mm of rain. The greatest risk is further slipping on sodden hills." Smith also acknowledged Lines' death, saying "Our love goes out to Peter's wife, family and the Wakefield community at this very difficult time." Civil Defence controller Alec Louverdis said they were planning for the "worst case scenario". ADVERTISEMENT "It's not good news with everything so wet and inundated."
RNZ News
18 hours ago
- RNZ News
Weather: 'Another significant' wave of storms on way for Tasman, Nelson in flood aftermath
A flooded Riwaka property. Photo: Samantha Gee / RNZ MetService are warning the storm-battered Tasman and Nelson regions to prepare for more thunderstorms, wind and rain later this week. It comes as the area's deal with the aftermath of after heavy rain on Friday and Saturday. MetService's head of weather news Heather Keats told Morning Report the unfortunate weather was what they had expected. "We have been looking at stats, and Nelson and Blenheim had their wettest June days on the 26, and Blenheim, it was their third wettest day on record and unfortunately there is more to come. "Another front that will bring rain and a string of north-easterly to many." Keats said the next wild weather was set to hit on Wednesday night, with a second wave on Friday. "It is likely to to be another significant event and it will lead to watches and warnings," she said. Thunderstorms were forecast to bring heavy rain to Nelson, Blenheim, Buller and Marlborough. "Unfortunately it is going to be a similar event [to last weekend]." The front was too far out to comment on the specific timings and amount of rainfall, she said. Flooding on a farm at Wai-Iti near Wakefield on 27 June 2025. Photo: Supplied Nelson and Tasman have been crying out for better warning systems so they can better prepare for these serious weather events. Civil Defence Minister Mark Mitchell told Morning Report he was committed to "finding a way through with the rain radar", but did not confirm whether the regions would get one. After recently surveying the damage by helicopter , Mitchell said there was "lots of surface flooding and significant damage to rural properties in the Tasman region". Civil Defence Minister Mark Mitchell. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone When asked about whether he would answer the calls for a new rain radar, he said he was working towards getting one in place. "That's obviously been raised with me and I was like look lets work together, i'm very open to finding a way through and providing support from central government to get a rain radar in place." But Mitchell said the problem was the region had many valleys that were very close together and caused problems in predicting the weather. "I'm very committed to finding a way through with the rain radar," Mitchell added. He also said there was a "significant" amount of mitigation projects around the country supported at a central government level. Federated Farmers president Kerry Irvine told Morning Report the scale of damage to rural properties in the region was "horrendous". "The damage to infrastructure, fences, banks is just horrendous, you've got to see it to believe it." The Motueka estuary, with Jackett Island in the foreground, after flooding in the Tasman region in June 2025. Photo: Samantha Gee / RNZ He said there was silt, debris, logs and gravel scattered throughout paddocks, but said he didn't believe it would be the end any farms. "It's not in our nature as New Zealand farmers to give up, it's just not in our DNA. "We are down, don't get me wrong, we are down, but we will get up again and we will repair our farms and put them back together. "It will be a long road and a challenging time ahead," he said. A mayoral relief fund has set up to support Nelson City and Tasman District residents, ratepayers or business owners and not-for-profit organisations who have suffered financial hardship because of the flood event. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
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weather infrastructure 22 minutes ago Nelson and Tasman is crying out for better warning systems so they can better prepare for serious weather events. Ingrid Hipkiss spoke to Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell.
