Wednesday 13 June, 2018

Moutoa floodgates open

Horizons Regional Council river management staff have opened the Moutoa floodgates this morning after rainfall has seen the Manawatū River rise.

Horizons group manager river management Ramon Strong says the Manawatū River is currently peaking at 5.1m at the old Teachers’ College recorder site.

“At this stage we’re expecting a sustained peak which means the gates are likely to be open until approximately midday tomorrow. We will continue to monitor the flood as it works its way down the main stem of the Manawatū and have crews at the gates until they close.”

Mr Strong says Horizons also kept a close eye on the Rangitikei, Pohangina and Oroua rivers overnight.

“The Rangitikei peaked at 7.5m at Mangaweka last night and didn’t require our crew to deploy the Tangimoana floodgates. The Pohangina peaked at 4.1m at 7pm and came out of its channel in places, resulting in some road closures.

“The Oroua also peaked last night but didn’t require the Kopane spillway to operate.”

Mr Strong says as water levels subside his staff will begin inspections of river systems and flood defences to assess any potential damage.

“There is some more rain forecasted for the northern parts of the region, although not substantial quantities and we’re not expecting it to have any significant impact on river levels. However, we will continue to monitor the situation throughout the day just in case.”

Members of the public are advised to take care while driving and check the AA’s website, http://maps.aa.co.nz/traffic/roadwatch for information on road conditions.

Up-to-date information on river heights and rainfall is available via Horizons 24 hour toll-free Waterline 0508 4 FLOOD or via our website www.horizons.govt.nz

Updates will also be posted to the Manawatu-Wanganui Civil Defence page: https://www.facebook.com/civildefencemanawatuwanganui/

For weather forecasting information please see www.metservice.co.nz

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