Thursday, July 14, 2011u

Horizons Regional Council has advised that the Moutoa floodgates will remain open for the next 24 hours relieving pressure on the Manawatu River.

Horizons incident controller, Allan Cook, said that the Manawatu River has peaked but is remaining high as the region continues to experience patches of heavy rain.

“The gates are currently open and we expect they will need to stay that way for most of tomorrow,” said Mr Cook.

Other rivers in the region are also rising but Horizons are not predicting them to be of any concern overnight.

“The situation is stable but the potential remains for rivers and streams to rise quickly in response to moderate rainfall,” said Mr Cook.

“We’ve seen some fluctuation in the Makino and we’ve had staff on standby at the gates today as a precaution. Although the water is receding now, more rain may see it rise again so we’ll be keeping a close eye on it.”

The Whanganui and Rangitikei rivers will peak overnight but not at a level of any concern to Horizons.

“The Whangaehu looks likely to peak just over 6 metres at Kauangaroa which may affect rural roads in the area but we don’t anticipate any other issues at this stage,” said Mr Cook.

Horizons is advising that there is still surface flooding and drivers should take care on the roads.

State Highway 56 at Opiki is closed due to flooding as is the road into Scott’s Ferry but alternate access is available through Santoft Forest.

Other roads have surface flooding and slips but nothing significant at this time.

The public are advised to exercise caution when driving and check the AA’s website, http://maps.aa.co.nz/traffic/roadwatch for information on road closures.

Horizons will continue to monitor the situation and update the public if necessary

ENDS

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