A local state of emergency has been declared in Christchurch and Banks Peninsula, to go with an earlier one in Canterbury's Selwyn District, as the region continues to be hit by heavy rain.
Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell advised of the declaration shortly after 4pm.
"We can see that they are dealing with a lot of water, but you know the response here is outstanding..." Mitchell said.
It comes as large parts of the country are being hammered by torrential rain, gale-force winds, high seas and heavy snow.
Many weather warnings and watches remain in place for Canterbury, the top of the South Island and lower North Island, and the East Cape.
Christchurch Mayor Phil Mauger said the state of emergency was due to the impact of the wet weather such as flooding, slips, landslide and falling trees, particularly on Banks Peninsula.
“We need to make sure we’re able to keep people safe by putting all of our resources into responding to any problems that arise and one of the best ways we can do this is by declaring a local state of emergency.”
“We expected the weather would ease, which hasn’t happened, so declaring will mean we are prepared for anything that may happen overnight,” the Mayor said.
“The decision to include Christchurch was made as precautionary measure.
"High tide is expected at 7.41pm so declaring means we would have access to powers under the state of emergency if they’re required.”
Little River cut off
Parts of the Banks Peninsula settlement of Little River are under water, with homes and businesses flooded.
Little River - about 30km south of Christchurch - is cut off with the main road awash and rain continuing to fall.
Rob Fowler, who owns an accommodation business in the area, says part of State Highway 75 through the settlement is under more than half a metre of water.
"The rivers are high and the Western Valley Road is not impassable but getting that way.
"Then coming on to the main drag of Little River, you can actually see that it's at least two foot deep down the bottom of the high street - at least," Fowler says.
"Looking at the Post Office, which is up steps to get into, it's nearly up to the window.
"The houses down the bottom of the street will definitely have been flooded. I can see something floating along the road - it looks like an oil barrel."
It is the third time the settlement has flooded since he moved there in 2010, Fowler says.
But the water is almost as high as it has ever been, and it is continuing to rise.
"It's still raining, still blowing a gale and the water is still landing and coming down from the hills," he says.
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi this evening said SH75 would remain closed overnight and at least until Lake Forsyth/Te Roto o Wairewa could be safely opened to the sea.
Checkpoints would be in place overnight.
Dramatic rescue
Earlier, a woman and two children were rescued after being trapped in their car amid rising flood waters in North Canterbury.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) said the dramatic rescue today showed the perils of swiftly rising flood waters.
Firefighters received an emergency call from the woman trapped with two young children in her car on a bridge over the Cust River at 11.30am today, RNZ reported.
She told them she could not go forward or back because her car was surrounded by water as high as fence posts.
Fenz spokesperson Ian Littlejohn said crews rescued the trio before notifying police and advising the council to shut the road. He urged people to stay off the roads.
A state of emergency was earlier declared in the Selwyn District and several roads have been closed across Christchurch as heavy rain lashes Canterbury. The heavy rain warning remains in place until 6pm today.
A wind warning in Wellington has been escalated to red until 3am on Friday and includes Wellington City, Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and Porirua.
Forecaster MetServices says "destructive" winds could cause widespread damage. There is a possibility of "threat to life" from falling trees and other items and could be significant disruption to transport, and power supply.
The severe winds and high sea swells are affecting transport into and throughout Wellington today.
All flights in and out of the capital have been cancelled for the rest of the day.
Cook Strait ferry crossings have been cancelled until late on Friday afternoon (Interislander) or Saturday (Bluebridge), due to high swells.
MetService advised the snow has eased but would still affect state highways throughout Canterbury.
- To stay up to date with road closures in Christchurch go to www.newsline.ccc.govt.nz/news/story/wet-weather-high-tides-hit-christchu...
Selwyn state of emergency as rain pelts Canterbury
In Canterbury, Selwyn District Mayor Sam Broughton declared a state of emergency at 5.39am today, following 24 hours of heavy rain in the region and the expert advice from the Environment Canterbury flood controller.
Broughton said the rivers continue to rise and there is significant surface flooding including on roads, with the heavy rain warning in place until 6pm today.
Residents of the Upper Selwyn Huts, where the Selwyn River flows into Lake Ellesmere, were asked to self-evacuate due to concerns of flooding from the river.
“This is a precautionary measure due to potential risk to the residents and their properties. There is an expectation that the community will be cut off, and the river may breach the road and access.”
Resident Scott Rushton told an RNZ reporter at the scene the situation was "the worst I've ever seen. I've been here 10 years but Nick, in the house here, he's been here all his life, he's never seen it like this before."
"The two houses down the back are totally flooded out. It's coming from the high-end, so it just gets coming down heading towards the lake."
The council distributed 250 sandbags to homes in West Melton, Doyleston, and Leeston, while community sandbag stations were set up at community centres in Sheffield and Glentunnel on Wednesday night.
Several schools across the district have closed, including Darfield High, Lincoln High, and Ellesmere College.
"We are encouraging Selwyn residents to conserve water until the supply can be restored. We also ask that you try and minimise water usage in Prebbleton and Lincoln as our wastewater network is becoming overwhelmed, due to the sheer volume of water."
Coes Ford and other fords across the district have closed.
A number of roads were also closed across due to surface flooding. The New Zealand Transport Agency/Waka Kotahi is closely monitoring the Selwyn River State Highway 1 bridge.
Environment Canterbury flood advisory suggests the main impact of the heavy rainfall remains north of the Rakaia. Ashburton District Council road crews were out checking on the state of the network and asking people to take care with widespread surface flooding across the district.
NZTA reported it has had five crews out attending to potholes on the South Canterbury-Mid Canterbury network. “Some potholes are 300mm deep, so people may see temporary speed limits and crews busily filling them as best they can do.”
The full extent of damage to the roading network across Canterbury won’t be known until the rain stops and surface water recedes.
On Banks Peninsula, part of State Highway 75 has been closed due to the high tide. The highway closed from Birdlings Flat to Little River at 11pm yesterday and was unlikely to open before lunchtime today.
Potholes on Deans Ave due to the heavy rain and road renewal works are causing issues for motorists. A contractor has been notified to fix the issue.
Residents with flooding or roading concerns are urged to contact the Christchurch City Council on (03) 941 8999.
MetService said there was a high chance an orange heavy rain warning would be upgraded to red in North Canterbury and Kaikōura, with the regional council warning that the torrential rain could result in flooded roads and rivers breaching their banks.
Meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said it had been been a wet night in eastern parts of the South Island, especially Canterbury, and for parts of the North Island.
The Canterbury region has already had 100 millimetres to 150mm of rainfall over the last 24 hours with more to come, she said this morning, and red warnings were still a possibility. "We'll be keeping a very close eye to see how things develop."
April has been an "extremely interesting" weather month, she said, seeming to pack three months of events into just the four-week period.
"This year has been OK for the Canterbury region, however, this rainfall is falling on extremely sodden ground and I think at any time of year this amount of rainfall would possibly cause issues."
Snow blankets Aoraki/Mt Cook area
Snowfall warnings continue throughout the day for the Canterbury High Country and some alpine roads in Canterbury and Otago, MetService advises.
It was a winter wonderland at the Hermitage Hotel in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park, while there was a dusting of snow Coronet Peak ski area near Queenstown.
Alpine roads affected
Lewis Pass (SH7)
Valid: 13 hours from 11am Thu to 12am on Friday.
Snow expected to affect the road near the summit, where 2 to 4cm is likely to accumulate.
Arthur's Pass (SH73)
Valid: 7 hours from 11am until 6pm on Thursday.
Snow forecast to affect the road near the summit, where 1 to 2cm of snow may settle at times. Lesser amounts likely lower down.
Porters Pass (SH73)
Valid: 4 hours from 11am until 3pm on Thursday
Between 3 to 5cm of snow expected to settle on the road near the summit, with lesser amounts to 700 metres.
Lindis Pass (SH8)
Valid: 2 hours from 11am until 1pm on Thursday.
Snow expected to affect the road near the summit, where 1cm or less is likely to settle.
In Otago, the Danseys Pass Road is restricted to 4WD access only (from the gates past the Danseys Pass Hotel) due to snow.
Strong winds in Wellington, ferries and flights cancelled
A wind warning in Wellington has been escalated to red, with MetService warning of "destructive" winds that can cause widespread damage.
The lower North Island is being lashed with gale-force southerlies today, hitting Wellington with some of the strongest winds seen in a decade.
There is a possibility of "threat to life" from falling trees and other items and could be significant disruption to transport, and power supply, the warning said. People should stay inside or seek shelter away from trees.
Sailings cancelled
Interislander Cook Strait ferry crossings have been cancelled until late on Friday afternoon, due to the high swells, while Bluebridge services won't operate until Saturday.
Interislander has cancelled sailings through until 4pm on Friday from Wellington to Picton and 8.50pm from Picton to Wellington.
"All impacted passengers are being contacted directly and we are putting on additional return sailings on Saturday evening and Sunday morning to accommodate impacted customers," the company said this morning.
"We are monitoring the forecasts closely and will advise if further cancellations are required."
Bluebridge has cancelled all its sailings until Saturday morning.
"All customers affected by these cancellations have been advised by email and text. We are monitoring the situation closely and if further sailings are impacted, we will notify you via text and email at the earliest opportunity.
"Additional sailings have been added to our schedule on Saturday to accommodate our affected customers: 1.30pm from Wellington and 7.15pm from Picton."
- reporting by RNZ, ODT Online, Star News and Local Democracy Reporting
