North Otago has escaped relatively unscathed from rainfalls of almost 100mm which caused rivers to rise rapidly and flood low-lying areas.
The rain and river levels were worse than the last heavy rain in February, but not as bad as the May 2010 floods.
Waitaki emergency services manager Chris Raine said yesterday's rain caused surface flooding in low-lying areas next to rivers, particularly some stretches of the Kakanui River, and affected some roads.
There were no reports of major damage and no reports of stock losses.
Last night, 16 roads were still listed by the Waitaki District Council as closed because of surface flooding, between Palmerston and Kurow, including Dansey Pass. It listed another 45 as requiring caution.
State Highway 83 had water across the road between Duntroon and Kurow when the Otekaieke River overflowed.
SH1 between Pukeuri and the Waitaki Bridge, which has been closed in the past by flooding, had surface water but remained open.
The rain was mainly confined to the coastal area of North and East Otago from Kurow east and ranged from about 50mm until late yesterday in and around Oamaru to almost 100mm on The Dasher below the Kakanui Mountains.
That rain in the Kakanui foothills, combined with falls of more than 60mm in the Kakanui and Waiareka Valleys caused the Kakanui River flow to increase rapidly from 1.4cumecs on Monday morning to peak at more than 400cumecs yesterday.
Other rivers experienced rapid increases, including the Maerewhenua, which went from less than 1cumec to 98cumecs and Otematata, which went from 3.5cumecs to 66cumecs.
Mr Raine said recent dry weather meant some of the rain would be beneficial, but the ground was now saturated and any more would run off.
The cold front from the south which met the warm front from the north has produced welcome snow for South Island skifields.
