Residents back in their homes after heavy rain in the top of the South Island

People evacuated from their homes in Nelson are now able to return and MetService expects the rain to ease overnight for the top of the South Island, which has been hit with high levels of rain over Saturday.

Civil Defence Group Controller for Nelson and Tasman Jim Frater​said just before 5pm Saturday that all those evacuated from their homes on Friday night have been given the all clear to return home and the evacuation centres set up have been stood down.

“The evacuation centres will continue to be on stand by in the event they need to be reopened,” he said.

He said on Saturday three homes were evacuated due to the flooding of the Maitai River, but they have been given the all clear to return home as well.

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“We are now looking at what the Maitai rover is doing, and it seems to have dropped throughout [Saturday] and it is slowly draining, a bit of rain in the next hour is not expected to change that,” he said.

“And with high tide later tonight we are expecting the river will drain slower than it would, but it should still drain.”

Frater said Civil Defence are keeping an eye on things at the top of the South, but a state of emergency in the Tasman, Marlborough or Nelson area is not expected.

MetService meteorologist Stephen Glassey said parts of the Tasman region saw around 300mm of rain since Friday morning in the Tasman ranges and is expected to ease up overnight.

“Things will be reviewed this evening around 9 pm, but at this stage, the orange rain warning remains in place for the Tasman, Nelson and Marlborough area,” Glassey said.

Glassey said it is not expected for any areas to turn into a red rain warning after today, but earlier in the week “it was thought to be a possibility”.

“The orange warning is expected to be lifted around 9 am Sunday for places like Nelson and 3 pm for Tasman as the front moves down to the West Coast of the South Island,” he said.

“But the orange rain warning might be back as the front is expected to move back North on Tuesday.”

Nelson Tasman Civil Defence said at midday on Saturday that rivers in the region appeared to have peaked, including the Maitai River through Nelson which had broken its banks in places on Saturday morning.

Some residents living near the river had self-evacuated, with memories still fresh of the rains last August that saw the Maitai flood a number of homes.

Nelson Tasman Civil Defence spokesman Chris Choat said a welfare centre for Nelson residents leaving their homes or feeling unsafe had been set up at the Founders Heritage park.

He asked those self-evacuating to register with the Nelson City Council or at Founders. The centre was put on standby at 3pm but could be reactivated if needed.

A MetService orange rain warning remains in place for Nelson, Tasman and parts of Marlborough until Saturday night. Choat said the weather remained highly changeable, with bursts of heavy rain causing localised problems, and making road travel inadvisable.

State Highway 6 between Nelson and Blenheim was closed on Saturday morning because of flooding between Havelock and Rai Valley, but reopened after 2pm.

In Golden Bay, State Highway 60 between Tākaka and Collingwood had been closed by flooding at the Waitapu Bridge on Saturday morning.

The highway reopened on Saturday afternoon, but drivers were warned conditions could change quickly. Flooding and slips had affected the highway at multiple locations between Tasman and Tākaka and temporary speed limits and lane closures were in place, a Waka Kotahi update said.

The agency said State Highway 6 south-west of Nelson was down to one lane after a slip near the Spooners tunnel. Waka Kotahi were also monitoring an old slip at Atawhai, north of Nelson.

“Basically roads everywhere should be treated with complete caution, particularly because conditions can change very quickly,” Choat said.

He urged people to avoid all but essential travel.

Nelson resident Vicky Jackson said many members of the community were waiting to see what would happen to the Maitai River during high tide on Saturday evening.

“Me and my husband went out for a walk this morning to see what things were like and the river was just flowing with such power,” she said.

“It wasn’t flowing as harsh as it was during the last big rain in August, but it is not far off.”

Nelson and Marlborough were in a state of emergency in August 2022 which saw up to 1m of rainfall in four days in some areas.

Heavy rain on Saturday morning flooded Vanguard St and Gloucester St in central Nelson. Gloucester St Automotive owners Gary and Joy Fisher were at work with brooms, pushing out an estimated 100 millimetres of water that covered the workshop floor.

Gary Fisher said the situation had been aggravated by motorists in four-wheel drive vehicles going at speed through the floodwaters, sending waves into businesses bordering the road.

Earlier, about 20 homes in the Rīwaka area of Tasman district were evacuated overnight as heavy rain hit.

Tasman district mayor Tim King said the Motueka Recreation Centre was opened for evacuees but everyone had been able to stay with friends and family as the situation continued to deteriorate.

“Roads are closed to slips in the Brooklyn and Rīwaka area and slips have cut off Mārahau. Crews are out working on roads and stormwater has caused some issues behind Richmond.”

The update from Waka Kotahi said there were flooding and slips affecting the highway at multiple locations between Tasman and Tākaka.

Waka Kotahi said drivers could use an alternative route when travelling between Marlborough and Nelson via State Highway 63, St Arnaud.

Nelson Tasman Civil Defence posted on Facebook alerting locals that by 9.54pm on Friday multiple roads had been closed in the area, including Cooks Corner and Umukuri, Brooklyn Valley, Motueka West Bank and Rīwaka-Sandy Bay roads.

Also on State Highway 60, there is localised flooding at the intersection of Riwaka-Kaiteriteri Road. A 30 km/h speed limit is in place.

“Contractors have been dealing with slips and rockfalls across the region’s highways overnight. These, along with localised flooding, are expected to remain a risk as the wet weather continues,” it said.

Fire and Emergency Southern shift manager Blair Walklin said on Fiday night that residents were evacuated from Factory, Old Mill and Swamp roads in Rīwaka to the Nelson Tasman Civil Defence evacuation area at the Motueka Recreation Centre as a precaution.

“They had some flash-flooding, lots of rain all at once, but it’s to be expected with the current forecast,” he said.

Those with concerns for their welfare were urged to head to the evacuation centre and firefighters were out and about to help anyone evacuate if needed.

“We’re just going around and knocking on doors and doing welfare checks.”

MetService cautioned that streams and rivers may rise rapidly due to the heavy rain, and surface flooding and slips were also possible, making driving conditions hazardous.

Tasman police released a statement urging motorists to stay off the roads.

“Police have received a number of reports of flooding, trees down and slips from across the region.”

“A number of roads are reported to be impassable, especially in the Rīwaka area.”

A spokesperson said police assisted with a small number of weather-related calls in the greater Nelson area on Friday night and Saturday morning.

“This involved assistance with flooding, slips and road blockages. Police are continuing to advise motorists to drive with caution as heavy rain continues,” she said.

MetService said the orange heavy rain warning would remain over Tasman from Motueka westwards until 11pm Saturday with up to 170mm expected about the ranges and up to 100mm near the coast. The rain would ease for a time on Saturday morning, it said.

The warning would remain in place for Marlborough about and north of the Awatere Valley, also Nelson and Tasman south and east of Motueka until 9pm Saturday. Up to a further 180 mm was expected about the ranges, and up to 100 mm elsewhere.

The weather would then move to Buller where a heavy rain watch was in place until 3pm Sunday.