Wairoa from above as experts assessed the damage from Cyclone Gabrielle on 18 February. Photo: RNZ/ Kate Green
Mayors in areas hard-hit by Cyclone Gabrielle and January floods say its a step in the right direction that the government is putting damaged properties into a categorised system- but they need more detail and it needs to "move with haste".
Cyclone Recovery Minister Grant Robertson said the cyclone taskforce has been working with insurance companies and councils to build a picture of high risk areas.
"There's no one size fits all approach - each area is unique and influenced by a number of different factors which is why we are taking the time to get this right."
The future of properties affected by the weather events will be assessed under three categories that range from needing simple repairs to never being rebuilt again.
They are:
- Low Risk - Repair to previous state is all that is required to manage future severe weather event risk. This means that once any flood protection near the property is repaired, the home can be rebuilt at the same site
- Managed Risk - Community or property-level interventions will manage future severe weather event risk. This could include the raising of nearby stop banks, improving drainage or raising the property
- High Risk - Areas in the high risk category are not safe to live in because of the unacceptable risk of future flooding and loss of life. Homes in these areas should not be rebuilt on their current sites
Wairoa mayor Craig Little, Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst and chairperson of advocacy group West Auckland is Flooding, Lyall Carter, said the plan was a good start.
Carter said there needed to be cross-party agreement so the process was not scuttled if there were to be a change of government.
And the two mayors said there needed to be more community engagement and certainty of timelines.
Hazlehurt said the process needed to be transparent so the community could understand what category their properties fit in, when the modelling, mapping and flood mitigation would be shown to them so they could understand how it impacted them, their lives and their properties.
Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst. Photo: RNZ / Tom Kitchin
"We've got a community here in Hastings that is really suffering and they are really anxious and need some certainty on whether they can build back."
Hazlehurst told Morning Report a lot of the modelling had already been done. Those in the low risk and managed risk category needed to be given the go-ahead to move on with their lives.
"What we've got is people living in properties without linings on their walls. They've got wet subfloors and still trying to get silt out.
"Some people are living in caravans, and other people are actually going back onto their properties and rebuilding with their insurance."
Streets were flooded in Hastings following Cyclone Gabrielle. Photo: Hasting District Council
Hazlehurst said she understood for those in the high-risk category it would take longer as it was a "bigger and harder" process to remove people from their properties.
Little said it was a "good step forward" but government officials would have to really work with the communities.
"It's not going to be easy because a lot of these communities have lived there for thousands of years and their maraes are there. It's not just easy to move them."
Little encouraged the government agencies to "get out of their offices and come out to Wairoa and see what is happening".
"We haven't seen anyone here."
Wairoa mayor Craig Little. Photo: RNZ / Tom Kitchin
He said he had been asking for information for the past six weeks and had not heard anything and people were getting desperate.
Some had their insurance but could not do anything with it because they were yet to find out if they could still live at their property.
"You can't let people just hang on, They've lost everything, especially uninsured people.
"We've just got to move with haste."
Cyclone Recovery Minister Grant Robertson. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Robertson previously said discussions with communities would begin as soon as assessments were complete and quality assurances were done.
"We know it is stressful for residents waiting to hear about the future of their properties and I want to assure people we are doing all we can to move through this process as quickly and effectively as we can."
