DCC gears up as rain bears down

The Dunedin City Council is gearing up for potential surface flooding after a heavy rain watch was issued for the city.

The warning, along with one for North Otago, was issued this morning by MetService, who said a period of rain was expected from 2pm today to 6am tomorrow, with some heavy falls likely.

The council said this afternoon that staff and contractors had been working to clear all DCC stormwater screens around the city.

3 Waters Group Manager Tom Dyer said crews had been checking screens to ensure they are kept clear of debris, and gutters were being swept around the city.

“While we have cleared the mud tank grates, there is a lot of leaf-fall at the moment so it’s likely there will be more leaves that need to be cleared. We’d encourage people to check mud tanks near their homes and remove any leaves that have piled up as this can cause surface flooding.”

“We don’t expect the rain to cause widespread issues but it is possible there may be pockets of surface flooding. We’ll be monitoring the situation and responding as necessary.”

He said residents should report any issues to the DCC so contractors could be sent out.

Elsewhere in the South Island, a watch was in place for the ranges of Westland for the 24 hours from 6pm this afternoon.

Accumulations could approach warning levels of 85mm in 18 hours.

MetService said a couple of cold fronts would move onto the southern South Island this afternoon and evening, bringing rain to the south and west of the island.

There was a low risk of one or two thunderstorms associated with the second of these cold fronts about southern Fiordland and Stewart Island from this evening.

 

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