Excelsior Rugby Club had a group of roughly 20 members out helping with the cleanup efforts in the wake of flooding in Oamaru last week. PHOTO: SUPPLIED Some of the heavy lifting required to clean up after Oamaru’s flood was tackled by some of the Waitaki’s ‘‘bigger bodies’’. Excelsior Rugby Club put down the ball and picked up the mess left behind after downpours flooded the North Otago town last week. The club organised a group of roughly 20 members to go out and help households with the cleanup.. When asked why they did it, premier head coach Jason Forrest kept his answer simple. ‘‘It’s just a good thing to do.’’ Being rugby players, they were well suited to helping out ‘‘especially with that big, heavy stuff’’, Mr Forrest said. ‘‘Just get some bigger bodies and some bigger people and just helping out where you can.’’ The club spent hours at Milli Maxwell’s property which featured on the front page of the Otago Daily Times last week. ‘‘We got there just after 10am and would’ve been at Milli’s house until 2pm-ish. ‘‘It was literally stripping the whole house out, filling big skip after big skip of all her belongings, pretty much. ‘‘We got her house sorted for her [but] she’s still got a long way to go.’’ With cleanup efforts continuing, Mr Forrest encouraged others to do what they could to help. ‘‘There are still people out there that are affected and it’s still a tough time for a lot of people. ‘‘If help is needed, please, everyone, let’s get out and help where we can.’’ The day was an eye-opener to the ‘‘pretty devastating’’ effects of the flooding, he said. ‘‘You just got a bit of realisation of just how lucky some of us were to not be affected. ‘‘It was awesome for us to get out and about and help people in a small way but in a big way at the same time.’’ Athletic Marist and North Otago Heartland captain Savenaca Rabaka also joined the group in their efforts. Excelsior put the call out to anyone who needed help on their social media last week.
