The Civil Defence Controller advises that the situation in the district is still not sufficiently stable to lift the
existing State of Civil Defence Emergency, and therefore the State of Civil Defence Emergency in the Whakatane District
has been extended for a further 72 hours and will be reviewed at 4:00 pm on Friday, 30 July 2004.
The reason for the extension are:
- Landslips are still occurring.
- There are residents isolated who cannot be accessed by road.
- The main access into the district is through the epicentre of the earthquake zone.
- The weather forecast is predicting heavy rain which may cause further slips and road closures.
ENDS