NZ Historic Weather Events Catalogue
January 2008 Manawatu-Wanganui and Wellington Flooding
(
2008-01-08
)
Extreme rainfall around the Tararua Range brought flooding to Manawatu-Wanganui and Wellington, around Horowhenua and the Kapiti Coast. People were evacuated and damage was caused to farmland and roads.
North Island
Multi Hazard
at
North Island
Duration: 2 days - From the 8th to the 9th of January.
A complex trough slowly crossed the country during the 7th-9th. Heavy rain first fell on the South Island's West Coast on the 7th. By the 8th, rain had spread to Central New Zealand. A shallow low had formed west of Northland by later on the 8th. It combined with a trough coming from the south, and resulted in rain spreading to remaining northern and western parts of the North Island. Conditions eased on the 9th, as the rain-producing system moved away.
Heavy Rain
Heavy rainfall occurred in the lower North Island.
Flooding
The rain caused swollen streams to burst their banks.
Northland
Heavy Rain
at
Northland
Heavy rainfalls were recorded in Northland on the 8th.
Manawatu-Wanganui
Flooding
at
Manawatu-Wanganui
Heavy rain resulted in widespread flooding in the Horowhenua District on the 8th.
Massive downpours left surface flooding on State Highway 1 between Otaki and Levin on the 8th. Both lanes of the highway were closed at 8:15pm, and re-opened at 10:30pm, with no traffic diversions in place.
Power was cut to some areas of Horowhenua on the 8th.
A Horowhenua resident of 60 years said he had never seen the river destroy so much land.
Landslide
at
Gladstone
Slips came down on Gladstone Road.
Flooding
at
Kuku
Residents of Kuku Beach were evacuated on the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Levin
Levin recorded 120 mm (12.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Flooding
The Levin water treatment plant was shut down on the 8th due to an overload of flood debris.
Flooding
at
Ohau
The Ohau stopbanks were breached at Muhunoa West Road.
The water was rising at a rate of 10 cm/hr before 6pm on the 8th.
When water gushed through the Ohau breach it swept through a house, a hayshed and a 500-tonne silage stack.
Damage to the Ohau Stopbank would cost $30,000 for fixing the breach. Work under way to upgrade the entire stopbank would cost about $2 million.
Flooding
at
Manakau
There was surface flooding on State Highway 1 near Manakau.
Heavy Rain
at
Manawatu Gorge
A car swerved off the road in Manawatu Gorge on State Highway 3. There were no injuries.
Landslide
There were minor earth slips in the gorge.
Heavy Rain
at
Muhunoa
Muhunoa recorded more than 200 mm (20.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Flooding
at
Muhunoa East
The small 31-home rural community of Muhunoa East was isolated by flash floods on the 8th when the approach to Kirkaldies Bridge on Muhunoa East Road was washed out. The area was blocked off for 24 hours until a resident built a temporary culvert on a farm, only accessable via quad bike or tractor. The council trucked a temporary Bailey bridge to the area, which was expected to be open by the afternoon of the 14th.
About 50 metres of the Ohau River bank was swept away.
Stopbanks overflowed at Florida Road.
Power was cut to some houses for 24 hours from the 8th after two power poles collapsed into the river. One farm was without power.
Phones were also knocked out. They were restored by the afternoon of the 10th.
Farmers had to dump a lot of milk that could not be got out of the farms.
Heavy Rain
at
Palmerston North
There was a car accident on Milson Line (on the corner of State Highway 54), in which a 4WD skidded and flipped onto its roof. No injuries were reported.
Flooding
at
Tokomaru
A breach in the stormwater drainage system east of Tokomaru caused surface flooding.
Heavy rain on the Tararua Range fed into the usually gentle Tokomaru River and caused it to breach its banks on the night of the 8th.
North of Ashlea Road there was a 20 m breach of the Linton Main Drain stop bank.
Six homes in Tokomaru were evacauted, five homes in Ashlea and Temukanui Roads, and residents in Campbells Road. Many other residents chose to move out.
Ashlea and Temukanui Roads were closed on the 8th.
In the Ashlea Road area water covered about 400 hectares of farmland.
One famer had 35 acres of turnips left rotting and winter feed sodden.
One Tokomaru farmer estimated it would take two years for his family to recover from the financial loss inflicted by the flash floods. His farm was the worst-hit in the area. He was forced to evacuate 320 cows, and the past 10 days had cost him $35,000 in lost milk production. Only 4.8 hectares of the 400-hectare farm was not flooded by the breach at the Linton Main Drain stopbank. Pasture was left encrusted with silt and unusable.
Flooding
at
Waikawa Beach
Waikawa Beach was cut off from State Highway 1 when the access road was closed at about 2pm on the 8th. The road was closed overnight on the 8th/9th.
Wellington
Heavy Rain
at
Wellington
Heavy rain fell around the Wellington region on the 8th.
Flooding
Heavy rain resulted in major flooding in the Kapiti.
Many campers along the Kapiti Coast had to move out.
Multi Hazard
Poor conditions caused road accidents.
Heavy Rain
at
Judgeford
A vehicle rolled on Haywards Hill Road between State Highway 2 and Judgeford Golf Course on the afternoon of the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Mt Oriwa
Oriwa recorded 320 mm (32.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Flooding
at
Otaihanga
Otaihanga domain was reportedly flooded.
Flooding
at
Otaki
Waitohu Stream burst its banks, flooding State Highway 1.
One farmer said it would take him about two weeks to set things right on his property after heavy rain flooded a field, ruining a paddock of hay.
The Otaki River went from a minimum flow to almost 800 cumecs.
Waitohu Stream went from a dribble to about 80 cumecs.
Traffic was delayed on State Highway 1 both north and south of Otaki.
Heavy Rain
at
Paremata
A road accident occurred on Parameta Road on State Highway 58 on the morning of the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Petone
A road accident occurred on State Highway 2 near Petone on the morning of the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Tararua Range
The Tararua Ranges behind Otaki recorded 176.5 mm (17.7 cm) of rain on the 8th (part of the day).
The Tararua Ranges recorded 259 mm (25.9 cm) of rain in the 24 hours to 3pm on the 8th. This was a record rainfall (the previous 24-hour rainfall record was 162.5 mm).
The rain was the heaviest about the Tararuas and adjacent areas to the west.
Flooding
at
Te Horo Beach
Te Horo Beach Road was flooded after Mangaone Stream overflowed.
Mangaone Stream went from a flow of about 3 cumecs to almost 30 cumecs.
Heavy Rain
at
Waikanae
Waikanae recorded 140 mm (14.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Landslide
Akatarawa Hill Road, the back road into Waikanae, was closed on the 8th because of a slip 5km along the road near Waikanae.
People were evacuated from lower sites at El Rancho camping ground in Waikanae on the 8th.
References
- Meteorological Society of New Zealand (Inc.), Newsletter 112, March 2008.
- Headline: Flooding hits lower N Island roads.
- www.nzherald.co.nz, Source: NZPA and NZ Herald, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: SH1 re-opens as floodwaters subside.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: NZPA, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Wet weather wreaks havoc on motorists.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Dominion Post, 8 January 2008.
- Headline: Rain cuts access to settlement.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Dominion Post, 11 January 2008.
- Headline: Two years for flood-hit farmers to recover.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Dominion Post, 22 January 2008.
- Headline: Families flee flood waters.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Manawatu Standard, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Vehicles washed off roads in downpour.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Manawatu Standard, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Water eats away at the land.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Manawatu Standard, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Motorists urged to take care on flooded SH1.
- www.tv3.co.nz, Source: NZPA and 3 News, 8 January 2008.
- Headline: Lower North Island mops up.
- tvnz.co.nz, Source: One News and Newstalk ZB, 9 January 2008.
January 2008 Manawatu-Wanganui and Wellington Flooding
(
2008-01-08
)
Extreme rainfall around the Tararua Range brought flooding to Manawatu-Wanganui and Wellington, around Horowhenua and the Kapiti Coast. People were evacuated and damage was caused to farmland and roads.
North Island
Multi Hazard
at
North Island
Duration: 2 days - From the 8th to the 9th of January.
A complex trough slowly crossed the country during the 7th-9th. Heavy rain first fell on the South Island's West Coast on the 7th. By the 8th, rain had spread to Central New Zealand. A shallow low had formed west of Northland by later on the 8th. It combined with a trough coming from the south, and resulted in rain spreading to remaining northern and western parts of the North Island. Conditions eased on the 9th, as the rain-producing system moved away.
Heavy Rain
Heavy rainfall occurred in the lower North Island.
Flooding
The rain caused swollen streams to burst their banks.
Northland
Heavy Rain
at
Northland
Heavy rainfalls were recorded in Northland on the 8th.
Manawatu-Wanganui
Flooding
at
Manawatu-Wanganui
Heavy rain resulted in widespread flooding in the Horowhenua District on the 8th.
Massive downpours left surface flooding on State Highway 1 between Otaki and Levin on the 8th. Both lanes of the highway were closed at 8:15pm, and re-opened at 10:30pm, with no traffic diversions in place.
Power was cut to some areas of Horowhenua on the 8th.
A Horowhenua resident of 60 years said he had never seen the river destroy so much land.
Landslide
at
Gladstone
Slips came down on Gladstone Road.
Flooding
at
Kuku
Residents of Kuku Beach were evacuated on the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Levin
Levin recorded 120 mm (12.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Flooding
The Levin water treatment plant was shut down on the 8th due to an overload of flood debris.
Flooding
at
Ohau
The Ohau stopbanks were breached at Muhunoa West Road.
The water was rising at a rate of 10 cm/hr before 6pm on the 8th.
When water gushed through the Ohau breach it swept through a house, a hayshed and a 500-tonne silage stack.
Damage to the Ohau Stopbank would cost $30,000 for fixing the breach. Work under way to upgrade the entire stopbank would cost about $2 million.
Flooding
at
Manakau
There was surface flooding on State Highway 1 near Manakau.
Heavy Rain
at
Manawatu Gorge
A car swerved off the road in Manawatu Gorge on State Highway 3. There were no injuries.
Landslide
There were minor earth slips in the gorge.
Heavy Rain
at
Muhunoa
Muhunoa recorded more than 200 mm (20.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Flooding
at
Muhunoa East
The small 31-home rural community of Muhunoa East was isolated by flash floods on the 8th when the approach to Kirkaldies Bridge on Muhunoa East Road was washed out. The area was blocked off for 24 hours until a resident built a temporary culvert on a farm, only accessable via quad bike or tractor. The council trucked a temporary Bailey bridge to the area, which was expected to be open by the afternoon of the 14th.
About 50 metres of the Ohau River bank was swept away.
Stopbanks overflowed at Florida Road.
Power was cut to some houses for 24 hours from the 8th after two power poles collapsed into the river. One farm was without power.
Phones were also knocked out. They were restored by the afternoon of the 10th.
Farmers had to dump a lot of milk that could not be got out of the farms.
Heavy Rain
at
Palmerston North
There was a car accident on Milson Line (on the corner of State Highway 54), in which a 4WD skidded and flipped onto its roof. No injuries were reported.
Flooding
at
Tokomaru
A breach in the stormwater drainage system east of Tokomaru caused surface flooding.
Heavy rain on the Tararua Range fed into the usually gentle Tokomaru River and caused it to breach its banks on the night of the 8th.
North of Ashlea Road there was a 20 m breach of the Linton Main Drain stop bank.
Six homes in Tokomaru were evacauted, five homes in Ashlea and Temukanui Roads, and residents in Campbells Road. Many other residents chose to move out.
Ashlea and Temukanui Roads were closed on the 8th.
In the Ashlea Road area water covered about 400 hectares of farmland.
One famer had 35 acres of turnips left rotting and winter feed sodden.
One Tokomaru farmer estimated it would take two years for his family to recover from the financial loss inflicted by the flash floods. His farm was the worst-hit in the area. He was forced to evacuate 320 cows, and the past 10 days had cost him $35,000 in lost milk production. Only 4.8 hectares of the 400-hectare farm was not flooded by the breach at the Linton Main Drain stopbank. Pasture was left encrusted with silt and unusable.
Flooding
at
Waikawa Beach
Waikawa Beach was cut off from State Highway 1 when the access road was closed at about 2pm on the 8th. The road was closed overnight on the 8th/9th.
Wellington
Heavy Rain
at
Wellington
Heavy rain fell around the Wellington region on the 8th.
Flooding
Heavy rain resulted in major flooding in the Kapiti.
Many campers along the Kapiti Coast had to move out.
Multi Hazard
Poor conditions caused road accidents.
Heavy Rain
at
Judgeford
A vehicle rolled on Haywards Hill Road between State Highway 2 and Judgeford Golf Course on the afternoon of the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Mt Oriwa
Oriwa recorded 320 mm (32.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Flooding
at
Otaihanga
Otaihanga domain was reportedly flooded.
Flooding
at
Otaki
Waitohu Stream burst its banks, flooding State Highway 1.
One farmer said it would take him about two weeks to set things right on his property after heavy rain flooded a field, ruining a paddock of hay.
The Otaki River went from a minimum flow to almost 800 cumecs.
Waitohu Stream went from a dribble to about 80 cumecs.
Traffic was delayed on State Highway 1 both north and south of Otaki.
Heavy Rain
at
Paremata
A road accident occurred on Parameta Road on State Highway 58 on the morning of the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Petone
A road accident occurred on State Highway 2 near Petone on the morning of the 8th.
Heavy Rain
at
Tararua Range
The Tararua Ranges behind Otaki recorded 176.5 mm (17.7 cm) of rain on the 8th (part of the day).
The Tararua Ranges recorded 259 mm (25.9 cm) of rain in the 24 hours to 3pm on the 8th. This was a record rainfall (the previous 24-hour rainfall record was 162.5 mm).
The rain was the heaviest about the Tararuas and adjacent areas to the west.
Flooding
at
Te Horo Beach
Te Horo Beach Road was flooded after Mangaone Stream overflowed.
Mangaone Stream went from a flow of about 3 cumecs to almost 30 cumecs.
Heavy Rain
at
Waikanae
Waikanae recorded 140 mm (14.0 cm) of rain in 30 hours.
Landslide
Akatarawa Hill Road, the back road into Waikanae, was closed on the 8th because of a slip 5km along the road near Waikanae.
People were evacuated from lower sites at El Rancho camping ground in Waikanae on the 8th.
References
- Meteorological Society of New Zealand (Inc.), Newsletter 112, March 2008.
- Headline: Flooding hits lower N Island roads.
- www.nzherald.co.nz, Source: NZPA and NZ Herald, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: SH1 re-opens as floodwaters subside.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: NZPA, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Wet weather wreaks havoc on motorists.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Dominion Post, 8 January 2008.
- Headline: Rain cuts access to settlement.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Dominion Post, 11 January 2008.
- Headline: Two years for flood-hit farmers to recover.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Dominion Post, 22 January 2008.
- Headline: Families flee flood waters.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Manawatu Standard, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Vehicles washed off roads in downpour.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Manawatu Standard, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Water eats away at the land.
- www.stuff.co.nz, Source: Manawatu Standard, 9 January 2008.
- Headline: Motorists urged to take care on flooded SH1.
- www.tv3.co.nz, Source: NZPA and 3 News, 8 January 2008.
- Headline: Lower North Island mops up.
- tvnz.co.nz, Source: One News and Newstalk ZB, 9 January 2008.