Roads and riverside communities continue to be the main areas of concern in the current weather event.

Timaru District Civil Defence is continuing to work with partner agencies to monitor river levels, which are rising at a moderate pace with the continued rain.

Civil Defence Controller Jayson Ellis said that they were working with vulnerable communities to ensure their safety overnight, and stressed the importance of people driving with care.

“The rain is causing significant surface water and localised flooding on many of our roads, which may not be signposted.

“While the weather has led to the closure of several roads and all fords in the district, the conditions are causing hazardous driving conditions throughout the district.

“Water on the roads can be deeper than it looks and may be hiding debris and washouts. We advise people to drive with extreme caution, avoid driving through flooded roads and if you can put off your trip it would be safer to do so.

“We’re particularly advising people in rural areas to avoid travelling unless necessary and return home before dark as conditions will continue to deteriorate overnight.”

Residents of the Mill Road Huts settlement near Pleasant Point have been asked to evacuate by 5pm tonight due to concerns about the integrity of the stop bank upstream from the community overnight.

No other evacuation orders are in place.

Timaru Urban residents need to continue to conserve water, as the rain has caused a rise in turbidity at both the Pareora and Opihi intakes.

While community efforts over the past few days have helped with storage levels, we need to continue this to ensure we can avoid having to put a boil water notice in place.

Further updates are available at Timaru.govt.nz or on facebook.com/Timarudc

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