Persistent rain has caused flooding and triggered slips in the Bay of Plenty with townships cut off and properties under threat.

There are reports of a slip on State Highway 33 at Okere Falls, near Maniatutu Rd.

Waka Kotahi asked motorists to follow directions of emergency services and delays are likely.

A large slip has come down on Valley Rd in Whakatāne taking out power lines and cutting power to a number of households.

Multiple slips and areas of localised flooding closed State Highway 2 between Awakeri and Kutarere earlier but this had now partially reopened.

Cordons were now set up at Station Rd, Tāneatua through to Wainui Rd at Nukuhou.

Slips and flooding are also affecting local roads with Wainui Rd down to one lane in places with temporary traffic management, and Taneatua Rd is closed.

The detour for light vehicles is via Wainui Rd, however, river levels in this location continue to rise.

 “Our teams are working closely with the Whakatāne District Council to monitor this. Wainui Rd may be closed at short notice if these river levels rise significantly, and the road closure will be extended to Ōpōtiki,” Waka Kotahi said.

“Geotechnical engineers are assessing the slips this morning to ensure that it is safe to begin clearing the road. There is also rockfall in the Waioeka Gorge and contractors are inspecting.”

Tāneatua and Rūātoki are isolated with Whakatane District Council working on reinstating access.

“There are multiple slips and areas of surface flooding and we simply do not have enough signage available to alert you to these areas,” the council said.

There is no access into or out of White Pine Bush Rd. Stanley Rd, Awahou Rd, Reid Rd and Rewatu Rd are closed due to flooding and or slips. Galatea Rd has reopened after earlier being closed.

A Uzabus spokesman said Te Wharekura Te Wharekura o Ruatoki, a rural school in Ruatoki, was closed again due to flooding on the roads.

Slip in Valley Rd, Whakatane. Photo / Supplied

Nukuhou North School outside Whakatāne, was also closed.

A GoBus spokesman said all school buses south of Whakatāne - servicing Rūātoki, Tāneatua, Stanely Rd, Matahi Valley, and Nukuhou - had been cancelled today.

The council has also issued water usage warnings with those in central Whakatāne, particularly from north of Domain Rd in the Pohutu catchment, asked to limit the use of wastewater if possible as the system is overloaded with rainwater.

Ruatoki residents are advised to boil their water until further notice.

“This means don’t flush your toilets, limit shower use and let the dishes and washing pile up til further notice.”

Farmers advised to move stock on low lying areas

The Whakatāne River has reached second warning levels in response to the rainfall and will continue to rise for a few more hours, according to the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

“Over the past 24 hours there has been rainfall of up to 230mm in the catchment.

“We are advising farmers with stock on low-lying areas adjacent to the Whakatāne and Tauranga Rivers to immediately move stock to higher ground.”

Flooding in Whakatāne on Wednesday. Photo / Hillena Parsons

The Te Rahu spillway on the Whakatāne River, near Awakeri, is operating this morning to relieve pressure off the lower parts of the Whakatāne River.

Water levels in the Te Rahu basin will slowly rise over the next 12 hours and notifications have been sent to adjacent landowners.

Flooding on Taneatua Rd. Photo / Whakatāne District Council

Access to Ōpōtiki via Wainui Road is currently blocked by flooding, due to the rainfall overnight.

The Kaituna River level is currently just above the first warning level, which means the river level has reached its normal channel capacity, however, it is slowly rising and the council will notify landowners if it reaches the second warning level via their text alert system.

The Waioeka and Otara Rivers are currently below warning levels.

Weather watches remain in place

A heavy rain watch remains in place for Bay of Plenty, west of Te Kaha, until 6pm Wednesday.

The Whakatāne District had 29.8mm of rain fall across three hours overnight - from 11pm to 2am.

He said while the rain would continue to fall, it would not be at the levels it has been and the heavy rain was shifting to the west of the country.

He said while the heaviest of the rain has happened, the weather was still forecast to be a mix of rain and showers until Sunday across the region, with a risk of being heavy at times.

MetService meteorologist Jessie Owen said in the 36 hours to 11am Tuesday, up to 80mm of rain had been recorded in the Bay of Plenty.

Whakatane recorded 79.8mm of rain, Rotorua 79.2mm, Waihi 74.8mm, Te Puke 68.8mm and Tauranga 37.7mm

In the Coromandel about 140mm was recorded in the ranges, while closer to the coast up to 90mm was recorded.

Whangamatā recorded 89.4mm and Whitianga 33.2mm.

This was on top of the 278mm already recorded at Pinnacles Hut in the Coromandel Range in the 24 hours to noon on Monday.

Bay of Plenty dam to commence ‘spilling’

Bay of Plenty Regional Council duty flood manager Peter Blackwood said on Tuesday those living near the Rangitāiki River that the Matahina Dam will commence spilling over the next 24 hours, in anticipation of heavy rain forecast for later this week.

”Currently, the Lake Matahina water levels are at 74.5m and slowly rising. When this happens, and when we know rain is coming that will elevate these levels further, we work with Manawa Energy who release a controlled amount of water to lower the dam level in the upper river catchment.

“We do this to reduce the risk on communities in the lower part of the river, by allowing the water to flow through early in advance of more rain coming in.

“This also takes the pressure off the flood defences and ensures everything is working together to help protect the community.”

The dam will begin spilling in a controlled way until 2.30pm on Wednesday.

A controlled spill is to be carried out at the Matahina Dam. Photo / Andrew Warner

“This will result in lower parts of the Rangitāiki River running higher than usual during this period, however, the river levels will be well within the stopbank capacity of the river and are closely monitored by our duty flood manager as the situation develops.”

In 2017, heavy rain caused the Rangitaiki River to breach a stopbank next to Edgecumbe, causing widespread flooding across the township.

Blackwood said the Kaituna River had peaked, but teams would keep a close watch on the Whakatāne River, which was “still rising slowly”.

”With more heavy rain expected to hit the region later in the week, it’s important that residents keep an eye on the forecast, stay up to date with any information coming from civil defence or their local council, and stay prepared.”

Meanwhile, Rotorua Lakes Council says people living near waterways such as the Ngongotahā Stream should keep an eye on water levels.