Firefighters close West Auckland road as house starts to collapse

Emergency crews have closed parts of a major west Auckland road after a house damaged in a recent landslide started collapsing on Tuesday night.

Scenic Drive in Swanson was barred to traffic just after 7.30pm as a red-stickered house started showing signs of breaking up.

A FENZ spokesperson said a neighbour had called emergency services worried that the house was going to come down.

He said when the firefighters got to the scene and saw the house they agreed that it posed a risk of coming down and decided to take action.

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“We were aware of this property and that it might collapse,” the spokesperson said.

He added that the property was unoccupied and no one was in imminent danger.

“We have given advice to neighbours about the situation and will continue to keep an eye on what’s happening.”

Auckland Council’s Mervyn Chetty said the area had been affected by rainfall over the last few days which led to further slips on Tuesday evening.

“This is one of a number of red placarded properties on this stretch of Scenic Drive in Swanson,” Chetty said.

“The council has been working with the property owners on controlled demolition of the home, which has included ensuring the necessary geotechnical assessments are carried out before work begins.”

He urged people to observe all cordons and roadblocks, adding that the council’s team would reassess the situation on Wednesday morning.

Police are in attendance aiding with traffic management.