MEDIA RELEASE

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Taking stock of costs

Agencies across the Horizons Region are continuing to compile a picture of the economic impacts of recent flooding, as the Prime Minister prepares to visit key districts tomorrow.

Horizons regional recovery manager Ged Shirley says the full cost of the recovery is not yet known. However, it is expected to run well into the tens of millions of dollars.

Horizons Regional Council operations staff are working to prioritise key areas of the region’s flood protection network in need of urgent repairs. Work on most critical flood protection infrastructure affected by flood damage is already underway, and all urgent works are expected to be undertaken within the next three weeks.

“At this stage it’s estimated that immediate repairs to the flood protection and drainage network will cost around $600,000 and a further $2.3 million required to undertake erosion protection and control works over the next three years,” Mr Shirley says.

City and district councils are currently working to compile initial assessments of their economic, built, natural and social environments to provide a complete regional picture to the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management. This picture is expected to be refined in the weeks and months to come. However, an initial region wide assessment for all damage will be provided tomorrow.

Horizons Regional Council is also working to coordinate additional support for the districts through the Ministry of Social Development’s enhanced Taskforce Green initiative.

Mr Shirley says the $250,000 committed by MSD to Taskforce Green in the Horizons Region and Taranaki District will provide targeted support for the clean-up of both urban and rural areas. This support will be coordinated to meet the greatest needs.

“There are already a lot of people on the ground ensuring that urgent work is underway. This is just a way of identifying where city and district councils need extra assistance and skills, so the Taskforce can provide that assistance.”

“We are also working with the Rural Support Network to assess where these resources could be employed to speed up rural recovery.”

On Tuesday, Civil Defence Minister Nikki Kaye announced that $500,000 would be available to assist flood-affected communities and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy announced the Government would be contributing another $100,000 towards local Rural Support Trusts.

Despite this, there will still be many individuals feeling the financial impact of floodwaters for many months to come.

Anyone wishing to make a donation to the Manawatu Wanganui Regional Disaster Relief Fund Trust can do so by depositing funds into the following Westpac bank account – 030-728-0411355-00.

The Wanganui District Council Mayoral Fund has also been activated for people wanting to make specific donations to the people of Wanganui in both the urban and rural areas. Donations to this fund can be made via Westpac account number 03 0791 0355050 04. People are being asked to leave their contact details and name as the reference details if they wish.

Both welfare centres in Wanganui will be closing at 7 tonight, with the centre at Wanganui Girls’ College in Wanganui East to reopen at 8am tomorrow. This centre will remain open from 8am until 7pm until further notice.

Over the course of the event, 400 people have registered as evacuees in Wanganui and 69 are now in paid accommodation. The remainder are staying with family and friends.

A number of roads remain closed, with local authorities and NZTA working as quickly as possible to restore access to isolated communities. The latest information on road closures is available fromwww.nzta.govt.nz and local council websites. If you would like to make a contribution the account number is Westpac 03 0791 0355050 04. Over to you if you want to leave us your contact details and name as the reference.

Facebook page www.facebook.com/civildefencemanawatuwanganui will continue to act as a hub for flood-related information.

ENDS

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