Flooding damages South Wairarapa bridge again

A Wairarapa farmer has said "we can't go on like this" after floodwaters again washed out a key bridge south of Martinborough, cutting off hundreds of homes.

Part of the Tūranganui River bridge has been washed away following heavy rain, leaving limited access to around 460 homes, including Lake Ferry and Ngāwi.

Farmer Mike Warren, who has lived by the river all his life, said the damage to the bridge was severe.

"A lot of the slash, not forestry slash, just up [and] down the river, has come down and blocked the bridge and then put pressure on it," he said.

Warren said years of underinvestment in flood protection had left the region vulnerable.

"It's got us to a point where it doesn't take a major flood to be a major problem."

"We can't continue like this," he said. "We're not fixing things properly. It's putting a patch on that's not good enough, and we're getting found out,"

Warren said his sheep and beef farm had crops under water and he had 150 cattle to feed.

He said he had ongoing concerns about the safety of his family and stock if the river stopbanks continued to fail.

The Wairarapa Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) said on Saturday that the Tūranganui River bridge was expected to be reinstated halfway through next week.

It said while weather conditions were easing across the region, river levels were still elevated on Saturday evening, and widespread surface flooding was ongoing.

It added there was still a concern around further slips and erosion, and essential services might be disrupted particularly in areas where access was still limited.

"Rock and other materials are being sourced to be able to get going on repairs as soon as the river levels subside. It is still expected that the bridge will be reinstated midweek."

Power outages were still affecting many in coastal areas and the lack of access through the Tūranganui River bridge was hindering the process.

"PowerCo can't get across the Turanganui bridge so we are liaising with them about what other options are available to restore power," Wairarapa EOC said.

"The wastewater system at Lake Ferry relies on power to operate, so contingency planning is underway incase power cannot be restored in the next few days."

It noted that the system was still able to operate on its own for a short amount of time.

Planning was also underway to deliver supplies and other support where it's needed.