Housing / Local Council

Auckland flood recovery enters next phase as holiday season looms

09:20 am on 5 December 2023

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Slip damage in Titirangi, following the January floods and February's Cyclone Gabrielle. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi

Tough decisions are looming for Auckland's flood recovery as affected residents head into the holiday season.

It's been around 10 months since the Auckland anniversary weekend floods, and Cyclone Gabrielle, hit the region within weeks of each other. 3000 properties were damaged by the floods, with many still awaiting categorisation.

And buyout negotiations are beginning for the first lot of properties which have been deemed level three - meaning they pose intolerable risk to life, and owners will not return.

Auckland Council will be discussing the Recovery Plan next Thursday, which formally sets out the next phase of response, and looks at how to improve resilience for future weather events.

And progress is being made on Blue-Green Network planning - a host of community-level projects to support properties in high-risk areas.

Group Recovery Manager Mat Tucker joins Kathryn to look back on what has been a tough year for many.