Storm and flooding event 29-31 July 2025
CURRENT
UPDATE Sunday 3 August
All remaining roads are now open (including the final length of Waiotahe Valley Road) and power is now restored to all areas including Ruatuna Road.
If you have any further issues or concerns, please raise these through council online or be calling 07 315 3030.
UPDATE 4:23pm Thursday 31 July
Kia ora Ōpōtiki whānau – holy hika it’s been a couple of days….So here’s an update on a whole couple of things.
Particular shout out to those who are still dealing with power outages, closed roads, drowned cars, and wet properties.
The first is a huge thank you. The manaakitanga and whanaunatanga of the last few days has been😭. Marae welcomed lost travellers, friends and workmates were hosted, blankets were found, and warm food and drink offered 🧡. People have been friendly to the hard-working roading crews and others out there doing the mahi to clean up. When the dust settles and the story is told, this is what matters.🧡💛💚💚💙💜🤎
⛈Tuesday night's rain (and power outage) led to a few issues⛈
🚧Roading and being cut off from our besties over in Whakatāne was hard!
✅We’re all reconnected with both SH2 and Wainui road open but with stop/go and one lane in places so please take extra care.
✅SH35 is also open but Waka Kotahi advise no trucks please. There is stop/go in places and only one lane about the place so please take care.
💡There is one main power outage we are aware of (looking at you Ruatuna Road peeps). We're working with lines companies to get those trees sorted asap so the power can come back on.
🏡 We know there are a couple of dozen properties that got pretty hard hit. If council hasn’t been in touch about your property, give our main council lines and call so one of the team can make contact 07 315 3030.
🛠 We've had some teams out and about checking some of the harder-hit areas and knocking on doors to check in. Give a friendly wave 👋if you see them in your area. They're getting around currently focused on Waiotahe Valley (in top end areas access is still limited). Delta are working super hard out there and haven't stopped thanks guys 💛.
⛔There are still quite a number of issues on local roads around the district. Our roading crews are working through these and we'll keep the latest list on our website (link in the comments). If you don’t see your road on this list but think you should be, please call our main number on 07 315 3030.
🚽The wastewater network struggled for a while there and there was lots of ponding around town. Issues have eased and today’s ☀ sun is really helping. BUUUT the system is still catching up. Please limit water use where you can and give the network and treatment areas a chance to catch up.
And on that topic (not to nag buuut) please don’t play around in flood waters. Work on the assumption all floodwater is contaminated (runoff, sewage, rubbish). You don’t want to get sick 🦠, so stay out and wash your hands carefully.
And during all this....
🌊The biggest earthquake for YEARS hit Russia and we felt the waves on the other side of the globe. New Zealand remains under a national strong and unusual current threat and while the worst of that has passed, @NZCivilDefence advises that there could be strong and unusual currents for the next 24 hours.
Noho haumaru e te whānau | Stay safe everyone . Tomorrow will be quieter....
Latest Roading info updates 9am 1/8:
State highways:
✅Wainui road is OPEN – one lane stop / go
✅SH2 at Matekerepu corner – OPEN
✅SH2 at Waimana gorge – OPEN
✅SH2 at Waiotahe bluff – OPEN one lane stop / go
Local Roads:
⛔Waiotahi Valley Rd - Currently working from the 15km mark, expect to reopen today 1/8
⛔Rankin Rd – Expect to open 1/8
⚠Pakihi - open with passable slips
⚠Otara - open with passable slips
⚠Ohiwa Harbour Rd - working on cleanup to reopen to both lanes today 1/8
⚠Reeves Road - working on cleanup to reopen to both lanes today 1/8
⚠Ohiwa Loop Rd - working on cleanup to reopen to both lanes today 1/8
⚠Ruatuna Rd - working on cleanup to reopen to both lanes today 1/8
✅Wainui Rd – open
✅Parkinson Road - open
✅Verralls Rd - Open
✅Browns Rd - Open
✅Toones Road - Open at both ends
✅Motu/Takaputahi - all clear and open
✅Tutaetoko Rd – Open
PREVIOUS UPDATES
UPDATE 2:32pm Thursday 31 July
A few quick updates from around the Ōpōtiki district:
💡We are working with the lines company to get some trees down, lines back up and power back on on Ruatuna road
🏡 We know there are a couple of dwellings around the rohe that may have experienced flooding issues. If you haven’t had someone from council get in touch, give our main council lines and call so one of the team can make contact 07 315 3030.
📹 We were hoping to have some drone footage to share but technology didn’t play ball. But teams still got to most of the slips to inspect the damage.
🚽 Wastewater network issues have eased and today’s ☀sun is really helping with ponding in many low-lying areas around town. BUUUT the system is still catching up. Please limit water use where you can and give the network and treatment areas a chance to catch up.
And on that topic (not to nag buuut) please don’t play around in flood waters. Work on the assumption all floodwater is contaminated (runoff, sewage, rubbish). You don’t want to get sick 🦠, so stay out and wash your hands carefully.
✅As you know, all our State Highways (SH2 and SH35) plus Wainui Road are open, although there is stop/go in places and only one lane and other major and minor issues to look out for. So expect delays and please continue to be patient with the hard-working crews.
There are still quite a number of issues on local roads around the district. Our roading crews are working through these and we’ll update here, the website and Antenno as these come back online.
Thursday morning
UPDATE 11:22am Thursday 31 July
There were some ongoing issues with flooding and slips on these routes so to confirm:
✅ Waimana gorge is open (short sections one way with stop/go)
✅ SH35 - for light vehicles only (no trucks!). Some places are only one lane and there are trees down and slips in various spots - please take super care as these are worked through by NZTA teams.
https://www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz/highway-conditions/bay-of-plenty
⛔ Please see the list of local road closures and partial closures below. Our contractors are working through these and we have teams out and will get some drone footage in some areas to see the extent of the slips. We'll share updates here and on the website and Antenno.
Previously:
Assessments underway on other local roads and SH35
✅Wainui road is OPEN – one lane stop / go
✅SH2 at Matekerepu corner – OPEN
✅SH2 at Waimana gorge – CLOSED
✅SH2 at Waiotahe bluff – OPEN one lane stop / go
Local roads:
⛔Waiotahi Valley Rd/SH2 intersection to Gabriels Gully Rd – closed due to flooding
⛔Waiotahi Valley Rd from 6km mark – closed due to slips
⛔Wainui Rd – closed due to slips
⛔Rankin Rd – closed due to slips
⛔Parkinson Rd – closed due to slips
⚠Pakihi/ Otara Rd - open but with sections down to one lane due to landslips
⚠Ohiwa Harbour Rd - open but with sections down to one lane due to landslips
⚠Ohiwa Loop Rd - open but with sections down to one lane due to landslips
⚠Ruatuna Rd - open but with sections down to one lane due to landslips
🚧Contractors are working to reopen roads and then will focus efforts on clean up and reinstatement.
🚧There is build-up of debris and silt on the roads so please take extra care when out and about.
Update Wednesday night:
Heavy rain overnight plus power outages on Tuesday night led to overflows within the wastewater network. There was loss of service in some areas of Ōpōtiki town. Portaloos were deployed to the worst affected areas. Issued lessened throughout the day as rain eased on Wednesday. Most concerns from the public were with local ponding and these eased through the day.
However, record rainfall in the upper catchments made its way down and closed several local roads and (by late morning) both SH2 and Wainui road - Wainui at Chedder Valley S bends, SH2 in Waimana gorge and Matekerepu, Slips at Waiotahe corner, and trees and slips on SH35.
Both roads remain closed between Whakatāne and Ōpōtiki overnight - there are people at Kutarere Marae and Waioweka marae. We will have a better handle on number shortly. Delta has set road closures before Waiotahi Valley Rd/Gabriels Gully Rd, Waiotahi Valley Rd/Toones Rd and Veralls Rd/Waiotahi Valley Back Rd to prevent (more) people getting stranded in Waiotahi Valley.
In the middle of the flooding we also has the Tsunami warning following the Russian earthquake - Home » National Emergency Management Agency
An 8.8 magnitude earthquake near Russia this morning may cause unusual and unpredictable water activity from midnight tonight.
In place until midday Thursday 31 July.
Kutarere
Council staff were made aware that people had found shelter at Kutarere Marae and that they needed supplies. Staff made contact and dropped food, water, blankets, towels to the marae late Thursday night.
