Latest news with #Motueka
RNZ News
19-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Motueka hall full of donated goods for flood victims
People in the flood-hit town of Motueka and nearby areas are being urged to get to the local recreation centre to receive donated homeware, bedding and clothing - much of it new. Local resident and volunteer Feebee Newlands said she went to the Motueka Recreation Centre on Saturday and was surprised to see hardly anyone was there. "We've got a whole hall full of donated gifts, from bedding to shoes, to cookware, to women's wear, to children's wear, to heating, to loads of blankets and and kids' stuff to gumboots that need to go to these families in need right now in our Tasman region, and anyone else that's been affected with the floods. "There's not a lot of families here, [but] it is for the community right here, right now. So come on down because we need people to come and grab what they need in that area." A whole hall full of donated goods - much of it new - is sitting at the Motueka Recreation Centre. Photo: Rachel Helyer Donaldson The recreation centre was open until 4pm. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
14-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Motueka farmer describes the harrowing moment his wife got swept away in floodwaters
Jamie Huvinton and his wife were trying to move horses to higher ground during a deluge when the floodwaters surrounded them. Land near the Motueka River remains laden with silt and debris. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi A farmer in the Motueka Valley has described the harrowing moment his wife got swept away in floodwaters in Nelson-Tasman. Jamie Huvinton and his family lost everything in the extreme rain over the last two weeks, with paddocks, fences and sheds being completely washed away by the currents. Huvinton and his wife were trying to move horses to higher ground during the first deluge two weeks ago when she got swept away. "It was around lunchtime, so just upstream from us was a really big island of gravel in the middle of the river. "The river came and flooded that island, diverted the river straight towards our property, that surrounded our house." Huvinton said the water was rising quickly. "On our front lawn we had my daughter's horses and I said to my wife, we need to move them to higher ground, otherwise we're not going to be able to. "We were walking them through the floodwater and as we're going down, there's like a little dip in our driveway and at that stage, the river was just like a torrent through there, but we had to move the horses. "And as she went through the depth, she slipped in the flood water and got swept away, and there was nothing I could do. "I had to grab the other horse and keep going and the only thing that stopped her from getting completely swept down the river was that she got caught up in the fence." Huvinton said it was an extremely traumatic experience and his wife was significantly bruised. Their home was now yellow-stickered and Huvinton, his wife and two children were staying in a rented bus on their property, as they could not find accommodation suitable for their animals. He said the community had been incredible, turning up at his property with food, skips, a port-a-loo and even diggers to clear mud and debris from around their home. A flooded orchard in Motueka. Photo: SAMUEL RILLSTONE / RNZ A pear grower in Tasman, Charlton Malcolm, said his orchard next to the Motueka River was facing a mammoth clean-up after two major floods left it inundated with silt, sand and debris. Echodale Orchard in Ngātīmoti was just getting stuck into cleaning up from flooding last month when Friday's deluge hit, causing more extensive damage. "The river came through roughly the same height as the first flood but with a lot more damage because all the trees were gone and the riverbank was weak. It's just completely devastating," Malcolm said. He said the orchard lost about two hectares of its land, and structural repairs could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. "We have about 50,000 to 60,000 pear trees in the orchard all around the five year mark, quite young trees which is good because they should be able to bounce back from the flood, from being hit, but time will tell," he said. "The weather is looking pretty good for the next couple of weeks so we should be able to make headway again in removing the sand and debris hopefully, then we've just got to repair the bank and hopefully there's not another 100-year flood again." Malcolm said growers across the district had been hit hard. "There's plenty of other growers down this river that have been hit a lot harder, in the same sort of situation as us, we're going ahead and cleaning it up. It's going to cost us a fortune really for all of us to clean this up and we're just all hoping that the government will give us funding or support or something to get us through for the next couple of years," he said. The government was assessing where funding might be needed in the region and how best to support it. On 30 June the government classified the floods as a medium-scale adverse event and made up to $100,000 available to support and co-ordinate recovery efforts for flood-affected farmers and growers. The classification also unlocked further support like tax relief, and enabled the Ministry of Social Development to consider Rural Assistance Payments and activating Enhanced Taskforce Green . Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
12-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Nelson Tasman floods: Civil Defence to assess damage to homes, residents' welfare needs
Live - Nelson Tasman Civil Defence will today focus on assessing damage to homes, and looking at the longer-term welfare needs of flood-affected residents. The region has suffered significant damage from heavy rain in the past fortnight, including flooding, slips, power outages, road closures, and property losses. Civil Defence group controller James Thompson said building inspectors would be assessing properties on Sunday and marking those with water damage. The Motueka Recreation Centre at 40 Old Wharf Road would be open from 10am for people to chat with agencies about their welfare needs, he said. People needing free meals can get them from Te Maatu wharenui at Motueka High School, from midday until 5pm on Sunday. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
11-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Thousands without power on Banks Peninsula, flooding in South Auckland
The storm band that has left the Nelson Tasman district flooded again and soaked much of the rest of the country is slowly making its way east. The region remains under a state of emergency, with evacuations, widespread flooding, slips, power cuts and pleas to conserve water. However, a red heavy rain warning for Tasman district south-east of Motueka was lifted at 9pm Friday. Earlier orange heavy rain warnings for Waikato, Coromandel Peninsula, Rotorua, Bay of Plenty, Mount Taranaki, Nelson city and Marlborough have also now expired. MetService warned eastern Bay of Plenty and Tairāwhiti could see up to 90 millimetres of rain overnight, with a chance of being upgraded to a red rain warning. RNZ is New Zealand's statutory civil defence lifeline radio broadcaster, providing vital information and updates as they come to hand. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
11-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Nelson Tasman floods: Multiple reports of people trapped, power out as rain smashes the region
Many locals in Brooklyn are flocking to the evacuation hub as heavy rain hits the region. Photo: Mary Argue / RNZ Fire and Emergency is responding to multiple reports of people trapped by floodwaters in the Nelson Tasman region. Some people are stuck in their homes and others in their cars, in many places around Motueka, FENZ said. In Mārahau, two people were trapped by floodwater, Nelson Tasman Civil Defence group controller Alec Louverdis said. They were no in danger but they were facing a night in isolation due to the flooding, Louverdis said. He said the region was being smashed by rain and the situation had changed drastically in the past 40 minutes. The situation in the region is "absolutely hectic", he said. His message to residents was to stay out of any water and to not travel. In Riwaka, about 20 residents were spending the night at an evacuation hub. But the Riwaka Memorial Hall lost power about 4.30pm just as residents were beginning to arrive for the night. Brooklyn residents and neighbours Ellie Henderson and Nadine Fletcher are among those spending the night at the evacuation hub and said they made the right call. Water had been gradually rising, but is now a river from one side of her cottage to the other. "I wasn't worried at first, but when the rubbish bin floated away and various things began moving ... we decided to work together and move when the time was right," she said. "Suddenly, the time was right when the water rose really fast. "The rain started getting heavier, and it looked worse than it had ever been before, so it was worrying, but I'm not worried now, because we're in a safe place." Because she lives on her own, she said the thought of leaving after dark was a little scary. Henderson said her neighbour's car had water almost to the top of its wheels, but because hers was slightly higher, they were able to "make an escape". Fletcher said, a couple of weeks ago, the heavy rain was just puddling, but now it was "a lot higher, and flowing through the property". Meanwhile, large parts of the Tasman District - including all of Motueka and Golden Bay - lost power about 4.20pm. Lines company Network Tasman said it would try to restore electricity to Golden Bay on Friday evening, but with strong winds and road closures making it dangerous for crews, it would likely stay off overnight. Network Tasman couldn't confirm how many properties were affected, but said it would be in the thousands.
