Pahiatua was isolated by the floods.

Streams were transformed on both sides of ranges into raging torrents.

Flooding occurred in many places.

Floodwaters and numerous slips closed many roads to traffic.

Heavy stock losses were feared in the Wairarapa where more than 600 acres (243 ha) of farmland was underwater.

The railway line to the West Coast was washed out in three places between Springfield and Arthur's Pass. There were two slips at Slovens Creek and washout at Annat. The damage to the Midland line was fairly extensive. There two extensive washouts in the Broken River area and some of the rails were suspended and swinging for about 50 ft (15.2 m). Slips 20 ft (6.1 m) high covered the track every 50 yards (46 m) between Staircase and Avoca.

Both road routes to the West Coast were blocked.

Roads in the northern part of the province were severely damaged by heavy rain and flooding.

The Waipara, Waiau and Hurunui rivers were all in high flood.

The coastal highway to Blenheim and Nelson was blocked.

Main North Road was closed between Woodend and Ashley and south of Kaikoura.

The approaches to the Glentunnel Bridge were washed out as were those to Cordy's Bridge on the highway from Hororata to Lake Coleridge.

Ten telephone poles beside the railway line at Ashley River were swept away. Communication with the districts north of Ashley were cut off.

The four Sefton lines and three Amberley and Ashley Bank lines from the Rangiora telephone exchange were affected.

The Ashley River railway bridge was damaged and unusable. There were major washouts at the approaches to the Ashley Bridge causing the misalignment of the bridge between Rangiora and Waipara.

It was the second time within two years Ashley River had broken its banks near the Rangiora-Loburn traffic bridge.

The shingle crushing plant of North Canterbury Transport Ltd beside the Ashley River was almost completely destroyed by the flood.

The river which is normally about 150 yards (137 m) wide became a roaring torrent about half a mile (805 m) wide.

The northern approach to the Clarence Bridge had a gap over 100 ft (30 m) wide.

Farmers in the Coldstream and lower areas had newly sown paddocks drowned out, standing crops flattened and hundreds of bales of hay still in paddocks ruined.

The highway from Darfield to Arundel was impassable at Pudding Stream and Dry Creek.

Eyre River was bank to bank and flooded a considerable part of the Oxford-Waddington highway.

Farmers were heavily affected.

Grass-seed crops lay unharvested and one farmer wrote off 1000 hay bales.

The river overflowed on the northern approach of the West Oxford Bridge on the highway between Oxford and Sheffield.

Along the Christchurch-Hamner Road a culvert was washed out at Montrose and a wash-out occurred near the Rogerson River.

One bridge over the Hororata River flooded and the approach to another was damaged.

Hororata was cut off to motor-car traffic.

Kaikoura Coast Road was closed. The approaches to the bridge across the Kowhai River were washed out and there were shingle fans across the road between Clarence and Ward.

The crop loss in the Kaikoura district was very great. 15 acres of hay (1000 bales) were ruined by deposited silt from the Kowhai flood waters.

Shops and houses were flooded to a depth of up to 2 ft (0.61 m).

Flooding came after the Kowhai River broke its banks about four miles north of the Kowhai traffic bridge. The floodwaters flowed north on to the low-lying suburban flats and following the same course as in the serious flooding at the end of November into Lyell Creek, which overflowed into the west end of the township.

Creeks and rivers were all in high flood.

The inland Kaikoura road was closed when the approaches to the Mason bridge were washed away.

Floodwaters from the Ashley River moved towards Kairaki and The Pines.

The road to Kowai Bush via Springfield was closed.

The approaches of the bridge over Kowhai River were washed away.

An approach and pier of the Archeron Bridge near Lake Coleridge was damaged closing the road from Hororata to Lake Coleridge.

The main road to Leeston was blocked by water.

The road to Lewis Pass was closed. Creeks along the first 20 miles from Hamner were all in flood and badly washed out and scoured the road.

A pier of the Okuku Bridge over the Okuku River was damaged.

Oxford experienced its heaviest flood since April 1951.

Rangiora was threatened by one of the heaviest floods in its history when the Ashley River broke its banks. Floodwaters poured across the country towards the Main North Road and Waikuku.

Ashley River overflowed an emergency bank south-west of the Rangiora traffic bridge then carried the bank away.

Half a mile of the highway on the Rangiora side of the Ashley River bridge was under 5 ft (1.52 m) of water.

The road from Rangiora to Woodend was impassable.

Overflows occurred at Postman's Road and Keeman's Road.

Selwyn River was in high flood.

The river overflowed near the upper Selwyn Huts, flooding farmland.

At Selwyn River there was 12 in (0.3 m) of water covering the Main South Road.

Ellesmere Bridge acroos Selwyn River had over 20 in (0.51 m) of water over the road.

A break occurred in the bank of the Selwyn River, a chain (20 m) wide.

All the crops on the farms were awash. Paddocks of peas, barley and wheat crops were inundated.

The road from Springfield to Arthurs Pass was closed due to washouts at Kowai and Dry Creek.

A power line was down at Stavely where a tree had fallen down when the approahes to the Roxburgh Bridge were washed out.

Main flooding occurred at the Roxburgh bridge. Taylors Stream had gone over the road and at Boyers Stream the road was completely scoured out.

4 ft (1.22 m) of water covered the Main North Road opposite the flaxmills at Waikuku.

A number of residents in the Waikuku district had their homes badly flooded. Water 6 in (0.15 m) deep ran through the homes and left a coating of mud and silt on the floors.

A considerable number of poultry were lost.

Baled hay from three paddocks swept into fences and cut lucrene was washed away.

Motor vehicles were severely damaged by the flood.

Four houses (approximately 16 people) in the low areas of the Waikuku beach settlement were evacuated.

The Waikuku Beach settlement bridge was impassable and badly damaged.

Waimakariri River rose 8 ft (2.44 m) at the gorge bridge.

Flooding occurred at Woodend beach and people were evacuated.

The settlement could not be reached by telephone.

There was a foot (0.3 m) of water in stores.