Marlborough’s stopbank system and river reserves from Selmes Road to State Highway 1 (SH1), and covering all roads in between, are now off limits for vehicles.

Effective immediately, the Council is placing concrete blocks and boulders in place to prevent public access to the stopbank area.

“This is for people’s own safety and the safety of our Council staff. Incidents involving people in 4WD vehicles accessing the stopbank have the potential to divert our attention away from where it is most needed at this time,” said Marlborough Emergency Management Incident Controller, Richard Coningham.

“If a road is closed, it is closed for good reason and we ask people to respect this,” he said.

For the most up-to-date information about road closures and the state of your local road, people are advised to visit the Council’s Marlborough Emergency Management Official Public Information Map.

Considerable work is going into regular updates to this as information comes to hand. Go to: https://bit.ly/CDEM-Map

In Blenheim, the Beaver Road footbridge over the Taylor has moved during the flood and will be closed until next week. The Diversion has also been closed till further assessment next week.

Persistent rainfall in some parts of the region, particularly in the Marlborough Sounds, is making for slow work for our emergency response teams who will continue to monitor already compromised areas.

The Council’s Rivers team continues to make emergency repairs to breaches of the stop bank system. The welfare team continues to respond to individual requests for food, medicine or help. If you need essential supplies and cannot access them, please get in touch with the Council’s Customer Service Centre on (03) 520 7400. In an emergency, dial 111.

Federated Farmers have also established a link for Volunteer Registration for this flood event. Go to: https://arcg.is/1riOW8 You can request a call back for specific assistance here: https://arcg.is/1LvX1b

The local state of emergency for Marlborough continues for now.

Residents should continue to follow the Council’s Facebook page, Antenno app, Twitter and the Council website for further information. Updates are also being broadcast by Marlborough Marine Radio.

Public health advice remains in place for people returning home: www.nmdhb.govt.nz/nmdhb-news-and-notices/category/nelson-marlborough-public-health

Roading alerts also continue to be posted here: https://www.marlborough.govt.nz/services/alerts

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