Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) officials have been working closely with geotechnical engineers to determine a safe approach to clearing debris on Upper Brecon Street.

The situation has evolved over the course of the day. The team is continuing to evaluate the weather forecast and expert advice to recommend an appropriate approach to allowing affected businesses at the top of Brecon Street to reopen safely.

The current cordon at the intersection of Brecon and Isle Streets will remain in place overnight for safety reasons.

Emergency Operations Centre Controller, and Community Services General Manager, Ken Bailey recognized that many people in our community will be concerned about potential damage to their loved ones’ graves in Queenstown Cemetery after the recent weather event.

“Parts of the cemetery have been affected by slips caused by heavy rain since yesterday. There is currently no public access for safety reasons while inspections continue. The emergency management and QLDC Parks and Reserves teams are liaising closely with religious groups and iwi,” he said.

“We appreciate the distress this is likely to be causing to those friends and family members affected and we will provide further updates to the community as soon as we possibly can.”

Next steps for Saturday are expected to involve clearing debris from one side of Brecon Street (adjacent to Kingpin and neighbouring businesses) to provide safe pedestrian access. The other side of the road will be cordoned off while we work to further assess and safely clear the area. A barrier will be in place to maintain pedestrian safety.

This approach relies on continued dry conditions, as forecast over the coming days. In the case of further heavy rain, the cordon at the Isle/Brecon Street intersection will be reinstated.

In relation to flooding at the Reavers Lane area, good progress has been made to divert water to a manhole, but further work is required to clear a blocked culvert at the base of the catchment.

Council staff contacted remaining affected properties directly. Access to all remaining properties has been reinstated.

This is the final update of the evening and the next will be sent out in the morning of Saturday 23 September.

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