Thank you from Southland District Mayor

As the floodwaters through Southland start to lessen, Southland District Mayor Rob Scott says it is timely to acknowledge the work of the people in our communities during this emergency.

“The state of emergency has been lifted, and we are going into recovery with the awareness that people in southern Southland are still managing floodwaters and further north in New Zealand is now dealing with the heavy rain we had.

“However, it is timely to say thank you to our many volunteers, our fire brigades, the Southland Rural Support Trust, our contractors, Emergency Management Southland and staff for the hard mahi they have put in over the past three days,” Mr Scott said.

“We have had some high-risk situations in Otautau, and in Tuatapere, and then across through central, northern and southern Southland, and people pulled out the stops to ensure any issues were managed quickly and professionally.

“From the sandbagging of the Otautau bridge, to the quick thinking to get a generator into Tuatapere so people did not go long without running water, to the support for farmers to get stock to high ground, our people did it together,” he said.

Southland now goes into clean-up mode and there’s a lot of that to happen, particularly on farms, so it’s important to remember and support those who need some help, Mr Scott said.

There are still several roads that are closed because of floodwaters throughout the district, and some that are open but have surface flooding and/or damage, so drivers are urged to take care and only travel as necessary. Contractors and staff are monitoring this.

For more details on roads, check the Southland District Council website or Facebook page. For further information on the event, please check the Emergency Management Southland website or Facebook page.