Hawke’s Bay Regional Council is urgently reviewing the cause of flooding in southern Wairoa, operating procedures for the river mouth openings and timelines associated with the event, it said in a statement today.
Regional council (HBRC) chief executive Dr Nic Peet said the council understood the levels of frustration in the Wairoa community and need for answers.
“The reviews are our absolute focus at the moment, and we are also in the process of commissioning an external review of this work.
“We will make these review outcomes public – with the review of operating procedures expected this week. The technical review of flooding causes will be done as fast as possible, but is complex.”
HBRC was working closely with Wairoa District Council and Tātau Tātau o te Wairoa to support the community, he said.
“Our Wairoa staff are supporting the Wairoa Civil Defence team, helping with rubbish collection, assisting with debris removal and rubbish collection. We are working with Wairoa District Council and supporting their business-as-usual functions.”
HBRC chair Hinewai Ormsby said, “our hearts go out to the Wairoa community at this incredibly challenging time".
The regional council was working closely with Minister for Emergency Management and Recovery Mark Mitchell and had strong and positive connections with Government, she said.
“We will be sharing any learnings from this event with our partners and the community and are advocating for long-term flood mitigations that ensure better outcomes for Wairoa.”
