Post-flood recovery – Update 11

Watch this morning's video update HERE.
Visit Rotorua Lakes Council's Civil Defence Recovery Project webpage HERE
Building inspections and welfare visits are on today’s agenda for Rotorua Lakes Council’s Civil Defence team.

Seven days on from a flood not see in over half a century that impacted hundreds of households across the district work is continuing to ensure we are reaching those who may need our support or advice about what to do next.

Civil Defence Controller said this morning that although we have a good understanding of how many people are affected there may still be people in the community who have not contacted us or that we have not identified.

“If you have been affected and haven't been contacted by Council, or haven't contacted us please call 0800 020 001, so we can provide you with assistance, or put you in touch with other agencies who can help.

“Building inspectors continue to work over the weekend. They have inspected a number of properties, focussing on ensuring properties are in a sanitary condition for people to be able to return to their homes

“The storm also caused significant damage to our infrastructure - our engineering staff and partners are working hard to identify the scale of the damage, draft a programme for rehabilitation, and identify the priorities for repairs.

“We appreciate infrastructure damage is causing inconvenience to a number of people, however, it is important that we deal with these issues in a priority order and within our resource limits.”

Building Inspections
Building Inspectors will be focussing on areas in town including Glenholme, Tarewa Road and Bell Road.
As at 10.50 this morning the team had carried out 58 building inspections across the district and will be cross referencing their checks with the 119 known insurance claims that have been lodged so far.

All going well today the building teams will endeavour to move onto affected rural areas south of Rotorua including Reporoa and Rerewhakaaitu.

If you need help or advice

Anyone who needs assistance should fill in a registration form at Council or at the Hub at Ngongtaha. You can also call us on 0800 020 001 and we can arrange someone from our welfare team to visit you to complete a registration form. For example, if you’re staying over at auntie’s or a mate’s place, and are starting to get on each other’s nerves, we can help arrange alternative accommodation.
You can also use the registration form for help with a range of issues from food, health, financial assistance, pets, rural support, or help dealing with the emotional or mental strain.

Security of personal belongings

Council will continue to provide security patrols in affected areas but please remember to keep private property secure or away from the street.

If you are drying off whiteware or carpets or any other items, put them in a secure place in your back yard and away from the front verge where they may look like discarded items.

If you are insured contact your provider to arrange waste disposal of anything you need to throw away.

For more information of advice contact Rotorua Lakes Council on 0800 020 001.
Information for rural properties on bore water
Septic tanks are a potential source of faecal contamination to flood waters and it is possible for surface water to travel down the outer casing of a bore into groundwater.

If your drinking water supply is from a bore and there was flood water around the borehead, then there is a risk that your bore water might be contaminated. If this is the case then please boil your water before drinking and have your water tested to confirm whether your water supply is safe.

Rotorua Lakes Council's laboratory can test your drinking water to determine the presence of Ecoli, which is an indicator of faecal contamination, free of charge to those affected by the storm. To arrange a sample, collect a bottle from the lab at the Wastewater Treatment Plant off Te Ngae Road or contact Council on 07 348 4199 for more information.

Looking after yourself and your family
It’s normal to feel upset after extreme weather events like this. If you need support or advice, or have feelings of anxiety, stress, prolonged fear, hopelessness or anger and need to talk with someone, you can phone Healthline on 0800 611 116.

When to ask for extra help
Sometimes post-disaster stress can be ongoing. It can affect your physical and mental health and wellbeing.
• It’s time to ask for help if:
• your sleep is badly affected
• you feel very distressed, irritable, on edge or agitated much of the time
• you feel hopeless, despairing, miserable or that you can’t go on
• you have trouble concentrating, are distracted and can’t do your usual tasks
• you feel your health has been affected
• you have recurrent nightmares or intrusive thoughts about the event
• you have new symptoms or old problems may seem to have returned (eg, breathing, heart or stomach problems).
For children, withdrawal, aggressive behaviours, difficulties at school, or problems separating from parents or going to sleep may also indicate the need for help.
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