Civil Defence says the effects of heavy rainfall on the West Coast have not been as severe as feared.
Before and after shots on Derby Street in Westport. The top picture was taken at 7.45am this morning, while the flooding in the lower picture was taken about 4pm yesterday. Photo: RNZ / Niva Chittock
Evacuated residents have been told they can return home after an uncertain night, which saw a king tide coincide with 48 hours of heavy rain.
People returning home are asked to be careful on the road, and using power and gas.
RNZ's reporter at the scene said the Buller River is still up, but flooding in Westport has reduced greatly.
Yesterday, 651 people were evacuated from their homes in Westport and dozens of evacuees have spent the night out of their homes.
They included 15 people airlifted from a rural property near Westport, about 100 people who went to the Holcim evacuation centre on Cape Foulwind, and 10 people who decided to go to the Seddonville campground evacuation centre.
Buller Emergency Management says are all able to return home today.
West Coast Emergency Management group controller James Thompson said that it was now time to assess the damage and get people back into their homes.
"We would like to thank everyone who self-evacuated during this event, and those that followed the evacuation order of authorities. We know that this has been a really stressful time for Westport residents and are pleased that the flooding of July 2021 was not repeated and people can now head home," he said in a statement posted on social media.
Thompson said work needs to be done around the Buller District and in south Westland and crews will be out today clearing slips and addressing other issues.
One of the Westport houses that was evacuated overnight. Photo: RNZ / Niva Chittock
Police have been monitoring evacuated properties and have increased their presence in Westport.
Flooding has closed State Highway 67 from Westport to Mokihinui.
A slip has closed SH6 from Inangahua to Westport although it is open through the lower gorge, and to Punakaiki.
SH6 from Fox Glacier to Haast is closed. SH6 is also closed in Marlborough by flooding between Hira and Rai Valley.
In Westport, Stephens Road and Elley Drive are closed due to surface flooding.
A statement on social media from Buller Emergency Management says Powerhouse Road is not passable after Christmas Creek and crews are working to clear it so residents can return home.
Buller Emergency Management says power should be on in all houses, along with phones, water and sewerage connections.
As well as residents, 26 evacuated cats and 16 dogs will be able to return home today.
They stayed overnight at a temporary animal shelter in a woolshed along with five guinea pigs, a rabbit and one tui.
Staff travelled from Huha Animal Sanctuary in Upper Hutt to help run the shelter, and keep the animals safe.
Huha chief executive Carolyn Press-McKenzie said it had been 'full on' dealing with such an eclectic mix of animals and she is looking forward to seeing pets and owners safely reunited.
The Civil Defence Emergency Operations Centre Photo: RNZ / Niva Chittock
MetService's rain radar this morning shows little rain falling on Westland and the West Coast with the heaviest falls now over the lower North Island, with some over the top of the South Island.
Twenty-five soldiers yesterday helped, along with a field kitchen and a team of caterers that has been deployed to supply food for the community at the Holcim evacuation centre.
Liaison Officer Ryan Dunlop said they are assisting Civil Defence and responding to the needs of the community.
The Buller River this morning. Photo: RNZ / Niva Chittock
The Buller District Mayor has applauded residents' response to flooding in the region.
"A really good response from the community in the voluntary evacuations that we asked them to do" - Jamie Cleine
Jamie Cleine told Lately many people in Buller evacuated their homes voluntarily.
He said when police door knocked yesterday asking them to evacuate, almost two thirds of people had already left their homes.
Cleine said this level of responsiveness has meant only small numbers of people have ended up in their welfare centres.
He said there has been a lot of anxiety about this event but it was very well forecast.
Cleine said most of those who were asked to evacuate were people whose houses were affected by the flood in July.
He said there were still some areas of concern.
"There's definitely a creek in Powerhouse Road that jumped out of its bed I understand and there's potential damage there," he said.
"I'm aware of two families that will be looking for a more longer term temporary accommodation, that may need somewhere else to stay for a while, but other than that, I'm not aware of any actual houses damaged."
Westport resident Kevin Storer said it was a relief when floodwaters started to recede.
He had reopened his market stall this morning, selling fresh eggs.
Storer expected life in the town to get back to normal fairly quickly.
"I think the town was very very lucky, the system worked well, the mayor and his team have got to be congratulated," he said.
"They've now got a real good plan in place so hopefully it never happens again, but if it does it's well organised."
Kiri Allan, Minister for Emergency Management, said the West Coast should hold its head high after a fantastic response to the severe weather event.
"Emergency management is about preparing for the worst and hoping for the best, and that's exactly what we saw," she said.
"West Coast Emergency Management, Buller Emergency Management and all supporting agencies acted early, decisively, coordinated their efforts effectively, and put the safety of the community first.
"The dedication of these people never fails to astound me. I take my hat off to them."
West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O'Connor said floods in the region could get worse with climate change.
He said people, especially in the town of Westport, were beginning to think about a long-term solution.
"The town has been built on a flood plane here, it's pretty high but the Buller's a very very big river, particularly in flood," he said.
"With climate change, no one knows what the upper limits are to big rainfall events. The last flood woke everyone up to the fact that perhaps we do need to do something, medium-long term, to protect the town."
O'Connor said solutions could include infrastructure like sea walls and river floodbanks or early evacuation thresholds.