New Zealand

Flooding shuts several roads acrosss Tasman district

19:17 pm on 19 July 2019

Several roads in the Tasman district are closed due to flooding after persistent rain throughout the day.

Photo: RNZ / Simon Rogers

Tasman District Council community relations manager Chris Choat said eight roads were either closed or reduced to one lane.

"This has been shared around the district we've got from the top of Abel Tasman Drive and Goldman Bay, Little Kaiteriteri right through to up the Mouteka Valley to Dovedale and Higgins Road etcetera, and so it's consistent across the entire district," Mr Choat said.

"We're still experiencing the steady rain, not heavy it's just been consistent throughout the day on top of two to three days of previous rain, which is obviously beginning to feel like various stormwater and the ground is not absorbing any more, so we're beginning to see the effects of that."

Traffic is also reduced to one lane around two slips at the top of Golden Bay and at Neudorf Road on the Moutere Highway.

People in Motueka and Mapua are also asked to reduce the amount of water they put into the waste water system, to ease stress on the stormwater system.

The council is also asking residents to avoid touching surface water, which may be contaminated with wastewater.