The former Scenic Hotel at Franz Josef Glacier, once the grandest on the West Coast, is "pretty much munted" after raging floodwaters poured through the premises last Thursday.
Up to 2m of icy water flowed through the buildings -- used mostly in recent years for staff accommodation -- when the Waiho (Waiau) River changed course and punched through the stopbank about midnight, forcing the evacuation of 70 people there, and 116 from a nearby holiday park and lodge.
Photographs from inside the former hotel, now known as the Mueller Wing and Haast Bar, show a thick residue of silt and debris, while the carpark and grounds resemble a riverbed.
The hotel opened in 1965 after the government formed the Tourist Hotel Corporation (THC) to manage its growing hotel portfolio and encourage industry growth. The Haast Pass road had just opened, giving tourists an easy route between the West Coast and Otago.
The Franz Josef THC was the first modern accommodation on the West Coast, and was soon followed by the development of other hotels and motels.
Peter McCormack, a glacier guide when the hotel was built, said the THC was "one of the better hotels in New Zealand" at the time.
It was top class and built to a very high standard, Mr McCormack said.
Current owner, the Scenic Group, had an insurance assessor and engineer go through the damage at the weekend.
Managing director Brendan Taylor said the building was "pretty much munted".
Staff had since been relocated to Scenic's other hotels at Franz Josef and Fox Glacier.
Meanwhile, Westland Mayor Mike Havill called for the Government to help protect the area immediately north of the township -- containing the Mueller Wing, holiday park, kindergarten and school -- saying the issue is too big for a town of only 300 permanent residents to fix on their own.
Acting Prime Minister Bill English told RNZ this morning the Government could help if there was "excess or extreme risk".
In this case there was a small community, with a river that had already behaved dangerously, Mr English said.
"We would expect there will be some discussion."
While he stopped short of saying the Government would stump up money, he did say that where the risks were extreme, the Government had helped other communities.
Westland District Council civil defence information manager Andy Thompson said NZTA contractors had worked on the rockwalls on Thursday to divert the river flow, although there was still a big gap in the main stopbank.
The civil defence emergency was now over, but there was the potential for future problems, Mr Thompson said.
