The cost of the deluge which battered eastern Otago and inundated towns and settlements south of Dunedin will be in the millions of dollars, authorities say.
Residents in flood-stricken areas of the Taieri Plain faced a fifth night out of their homes last night, as it was still too unsafe for them to return.
The evacuations of Henley and surrounding areas remained in place and around Dunedin city there were still smaller pockets where people could not go back to their homes.
KiwiRail reopened some lines in the area yesterday, but operations continued to be hampered by the flood's effects.
The deluge would cost the city millions of dollars, Dunedin City Council recovery manager Simon Pickford said yesterday.
The South Dunedin flood in 2015 cost the council almost $3 million to repair infrastructure and led to insurers paying out close to $30 million.
A KiwiRail spokesman said flooding across the eastern South Island over the weekend was continuing to affect its operations on the main south line.
As of last night, the line remained shut between Dunedin and Milton with the exception of a section between Fonterra's Mosgiel distribution centre and Port Chalmers.
A section north of Dunedin was due to reopen last night once contractors finished clearing a slip near Mihiwaka, north of Port Chalmers.
The section between Dunedin and Milton was expected to reopen late this week.
Mr Pickford said it was too early to put a timeframe on any return to inundated areas.
''Residents from about 130 properties, most of them in the Henley and Taieri areas ... are still out of their homes.
''We are following up with the various people who contacted us ... to see whether they still need any assistance or if their issues have been dealt with.''
Work to clean up the more than 25 slips on city roads continued yesterday and 42 road closures remained in place.
Five dangerous building notices had been issued. The council would not confirm where the properties were but Mr Pickford said they were ''associated with landslips''.
It is understood one is in Ravenswood Rd, St Clair, and another is in Blueskin Bay.
The city is now in a transition period following the lifting of the state of emergency on Monday morning.
The transition period will remain in force until 9am on August 21.
A public meeting for Taieri residents affected by the downpour will be held in the Coronation Hall, in Gordon Rd, at 7pm today.
''We want to be able to take residents through what we're doing to help them get back into their homes and our plans to repair damage around the wider city,'' Mr Pickford said.
''Support agencies with rural affiliations will also be there for anyone needing direct contact and help.''
Sports grounds around the city remained closed yesterday. A decision on weekend sports will be made later this week.
