Historical emergencies

SEVERE WEATHER WARNING. ISSUED BY MetService AT 9:25 pm 18-Oct-2014 Period of heavy rain for the eastern Bay of Plenty A front over northern New Zealand is expected to move slowly eastwards across the North Island overnight Saturday and during Sunday morning and become slow moving over East Cape Sunday afternoon. A moist northwest flow ahead of this front is expected to bring a period of heavy rain to the eastern Bay of Plenty. 80 to 100mm of rain could accumulate in the eastern Bay of Plenty in an 18 hour period from midnight Saturday. The frontal rainband should weaken Sunday evening. People are advised that this rain could make rivers and stream rise quickly, cause slips and surface flooding and make driving hazardous. HEAVY RAIN WARNING AREA/S AFFECTED Bay of Plenty east of Whakatane FORECAST Rain is expected to become heavy overnight Saturday. In the 18 hours from midnight Saturday to 6pm Sunday, 80 to 100mm of rain is likely. Heaviest rain rates could reach 15 to 20mm per hour at times. NEXT SEVERE WEATHER WARNING WILL BE ISSUED AT OR BEFORE 9:00 am Sunday 19-Oct-2014

SEVERE WEATHER WARNING. ISSUED BY MetService AT 7:36 pm 19-Oct-2014 Heavy rain about the ranges of eastern Bay of Plenty has eased and the warning for this area is lifted The rain has eased over the ranges of eastern Bay of Plenty and the warning for this area is lifted. WARNINGS NO LONGER IN FORCE HEAVY RAIN WARNINGS HAVE BEEN LIFTED FOR: Bay of Plenty ranges east of Whakatane

FLOODING IN ROTORUA: FLOODING HAS OCCURED IN A NUMBER OF AREAS OF ROTORUA AS A RESULT OF THE SEVERE WEATHER OVERNIGHT.

MetService have issued a Severe Weather Warning for the Bay of Plenty. For the Coromandel Peninsula and Bay of Plenty west of Rotorua Southwesterlies are expected to rise to severe gale for a time from late afternoon until late tonight. Gusts of 120km/h are possible in exposed places, especially about just east of the Coromandel and Kaimai Ranges.

Houses destroyed & damaged in Tauranga due to landslips. Evacuations

Declared at 1843 for Edgecumbe-Tarawera Ward. Matata township significant damage due to mudslides and debris flows down mountain. 27 homes destroyed, 87 damaged. Local roads, SH2 & rail extensively damaged. Evacuations.

Declared at 2147 for Whakatane urban area. Declaration extended due to concern about further adverse weather forecasts. Widespread road, infrastructure water, power, sewage disruptions throughout district, impacting on mainly Whakatane and Edgecumbe urban areas, vast rural areas due to Whakatane river breaching stop banks (in exces of 15,000ha farmland inundated). About 215 houses uninhabitable, more that 1300 evacuations. One death due to tree falling on motorist. Landslips aggravated by earthquake swarm (more than 100 shallow earthquakes) around Lake Rotoehu coinciding with the flood impact period. MCDEM appointed Recovery Facilitator.

Declared at 1700 for Waiotahi Ward. One death at Ohiwa Beach due to landslip. Numerous road closures due to flooding, houses evacuated due to deemed unsafe (mainly landslip threat). 10 houses uninhabitable. About 30 persons evacuated. Widespread water and power disruptions.

Declared at 1147, lifted at 1609 same day. A small number of self evacuations were carried out.

Made at 1800 hours. DRC appointed 05.03.87 for 14 days. Reappointed on 19.03.87 for another 14 days.