December 21 2016

Environment Canterbury warns people to stay out of riverbeds

More than 150 landslides have created dams in rivers and streams since the 7.8 magnitude earthquake on 14 November and subsequent aftershocks.

Environment Canterbury river engineering manager Leigh Griffiths strongly advises everyone to keep away from all riverbeds north of the Waiau River in case there are any sudden releases of water.

She said a number of rivers have changed significantly and have an increased sediment load coming down them; this means they are less predictable, particularly after rainfall.

“We strongly advise people not to go in the riverbeds. If you make the decision to, then you are doing so at your own risk and you need to be on the alert and have an escape plan.

“If there is heavy rainfall, earthquakes, changes in stream flow or colour or a loud noise then you need to be prepared to get out of there quickly – that’s why our advice is stay out altogether.

“It’s not great timing for outdoor summer adventures, but we want to ensure that people know the risks so they can keep themselves as safe as possible.”

In conjunction with GNS Science, and other agencies, extensive visual surveys have been carried out and the location of known dams mapped.

“We are focusing our attention on 10 larger dams that pose the highest risk to people, property and infrastructure.”

A map of known dams and the current status of key dams can be found on this website: www.ecan.govt.nz/landslide

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