Ruapehu District Council says ratepayers could face a recovery bill of more than $1 million after three major weather events in five months left widespread damage across the district.

Council infrastructure manager and Civil Defence response manager Vini Dutra said the first weather event in June caused $2.23m in damages and the second in July was costed at $1.9m.

“Damage and repair costs for this most recent event will also be in the millions of dollars,” Dutra said.

“We were still working through repairs from the July weather event, with around 100 sites yet to be completed.”

He said the council had been expecting NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) funding approval for this work within the next two to three weeks.

“Even with an increased Funding Assistance Rate [FAR] from NZTA to support recovery works, Ruapehu ratepayers will still need to contribute a significant local share – potentially more than $1m across the three storm events.”

The council would work to unlock funding from “all possible sources” to reduce the financial pressure on Ruapehu ratepayers.

Dutra said roading contractors and communities had done “a brilliant job” reopening 24 roads over a few days.

“It has been an amazing effort.”

Dutra said NZTA’s emergency funding arrangements allowed remedial work to reopen the network, but permanent solutions require detailed engineering assessments and costings.

“Although this takes longer, it means council and NZTA can make informed decisions about whether to replace damaged assets like-for-like or invest in greater long-term resilience.”

Roading crews made good progress over the weekend reopening local roads after last week’s storm and flooding, which caused extensive damage to roads, bridges and other infrastructure.

Access restored

Access to all townships has been restored. Ruapehu Civil Defence controller Clive Manley said there were now no isolated communities, but many roads remained in a fragile condition.

Council engineers have been assessing the scale of the damage, with repair work focused on restoring access to at least one lane.

Reinstating reliable road access was the top priority for rural residents, particularly farmers whose livelihoods depend on dependable transport links, Manley said.

Floodwaters caused around 80% of the roading damage, leaving behind cracking, slumping, heavy silt deposits, logs, debris and numerous slips and dropouts.

With most roads now reopened, Manley urged motorists to take extreme care.

“There will be heavy vehicles and repair crews operating across the district, specifically around Ōhura and Matiere.

“We’re asking people to drive cautiously and to be patient as some repairs will take time to complete, and with more rain forecast next week, the risk of new slips remains,” he said.

In the latest update this week, Dutra said roading crews had reopened all but six local roads.

Still to be fully reopened are: Takiri Rd – has extensive damage with dropouts and slips; Tapuiwahine Rd – closed at the 8km point due to the bridge deck being displaced by the flooding; Hohotaka Rd – has extensive damage with slumping – resident access only; Kokomiko Rd – has extensive damage with dropouts and slips – resident and commercial Timber Trail operator access only; Ōngarue Stream Rd – currently passable only to 11.3km (after Ōkauaka Rd) with multiple slips along the remainder of the road – resident access only; Taringamotu Rd – closed between 12.7km and 19.5km (except for residents) with sections undermined and one section having dropped out.

Ruapehu Civil Defence was continuing to keep a close watch on any forecast bad weather and preparing accordingly. The rain forecast for later in the week will be monitored closely.

The Taumarunui River Walkway was built with the support of government grant funding. Ruapehu District Council will investigate whether further financial support would be available to help with the rebuild.

The Taumarunui River Walkway alongside the Ongarue and Whanganui Rivers was badly damaged in the flooding, with large sections of the track through Nga Huinga/Cherry Grove washed away.

People were being asked to take extra care if walking by the damaged trail and to keep a close eye on children near the washed-out sections.

The electric barbecue at Nga Huinga/Cherry Grove had gone underwater and should not be used until it has been certified as safe.

The walkway was originally built with support from Government funding grants and the council would look at what support is available to rebuild the damaged sections.

Road access to the Timber Trail and Timber Trail Lodge has now been re-established for residents and commercial operators.

 
Ōngarue Stream Rd is one of six local Ruapehu roads yet to fully reopen after October's flood event. Flooding has left behind heavy silt deposits and multiple slips that still need to be cleared.

Welfare support still available

Dutra said the council was continuing to provide welfare support and had been checking up on people and communities.

Requests for support were now around how the council could provide more practical assistance, such as with clean-up efforts.

People have been allowed to dispose of flood-damaged household material at no cost at the Taumarunui Transfer Station, with about 18 tonnes of household flood waste dropped off so far.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.