A river water monitoring system belonging to Hawke’s Bay Regional Council was stolen from the Mohaka River monitoring site at Raupunga on Sunday, 12 April.

The site was broken into between 10 pm and 11 pm during Cyclone Vaianu.

The theft was discovered when the monitoring system stopped communicating with the Regional Council’s wider monitoring network during the cyclone, prompting staff to investigate. A police report has been made.

The Mohaka River monitoring site forms part of the Council’s regional monitoring network, which tracks river levels, flow rates and rainfall across the region. This information is critical during significant weather events to help assess river behaviours, flood risk and potential impacts on the community.

Regional Council Chair Sophie Siers says, “This is unbelievable and completely unacceptable. Stealing essential monitoring equipment during a cyclone directly undermines our ability to keep communities safe. After what Hawke’s Bay went through during Cyclone Gabrielle, anyone involved in this should be ashamed - this isn’t just theft, it’s putting lives at risk.”

Replacing the system will be expensive, and the Regional Council is now assessing options to restore monitoring for that part of the river.

Anyone with information about this theft is asked to contact the Police, quoting file number 260415/0987.

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