A house on the Kāpiti Coast, under repair following last month's flooding, has been inundated again by heavy rain.
A floating mattress in a flood-stricken home in Kapiti. Photo: RNZ / Katie Scotcher
Overnight 70mm of rain fell in the Kapiti Coast, causing surface flooding and two schools and a kindergarten to close.
There is also a severe weather warning in place for the lower North Island as a cold front moves up the country.
Last month, five houses were evacuated in Paraparaumu Beach due to flooding, including Jay Goldsack's property.
His father, David Goldsack, has been repairing the property since and said today's flooding was another setback.
Jay Goldsack's house. Photo: RNZ / Katie Scotcher
"I said to my son that we're probably wasting our time doing anything till we get it sorted out.
"He's only got insurance on the rental for a year though, so he doesn't know what to do - he's got a mortgage on it like everyone else.
"So it's a bit of a worry - I'm not too sure what will happen next," he said.
Photo: RNZ / Katie Scotcher
The street was completely flooded when he arrived at the property this morning. Water inside was up to his knees and mattresses were floating through the house, Mr Goldsack said.
It took council workers two hours to bring pumps to clear the street, he said.
Raumati Beach School after heavy rain overnight. Photo: RNZ/Katie Scotcher
Meanwhile, the Kāpiti Coast District Council is preparing for more heavy rain to hit the area tonight.
Council Infrastructure group manager Sean Mallon said operational staff had been visiting flooded properties.
"We've just had another heavy band that's just come through and is easing off at the moment.
"So the guys are back out there again, pumping down for people on their private property, offering sand bags if people want those," he said.
Council staff were meeting to prioritise its resources this afternoon, he said.
The problem was the intensity of the rainfall and the capacity of the drains, Mr Mallon said.
Photo: RNZ / Katie Scotcher
Emergency services received eight calls for flooding in Raumati and Paraparaumu Beach this morning. Raumati Beach School, Paraparaumu Beach School and Raumati Beach Kindergarten are all closed.
Raumati Beach School principal Mike Farrelly said water was up over his gumboots in parts of the school.
Flooding had blocked entrances and parts of the school, so a decision was made with the board of trustees to close.
Nathan Avenue at Paraparaumu Beach was closed earlier this morning to prevent vehicles from pushing surface flooding down into low-lying properties but one property had already been inundated.
Metservice has warned heavy rain could cause streams and rivers to rise rapidly as a cold front moves up the country.
Rain is set to continue with heavy falls of up to 30mm an hour expected in Wellington, Kapiti and northern Marlborough until this evening.
With more rain in the forecast, sandbags had been delivered to at least one other property in the area, Kāpiti Coast District Council said.
