Two more areas on the Heretaunga Plains have today been moved from Category 2C to Category 1, the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council announced today.

Residents of the Twyford and Moteo areas are receiving emails from the Hastings District Council advising them of the move.

The release to Category 1 means property owners in these areas can now make decisions about rebuilding their properties and their lives.

The release of some Category 2C properties is a gradual process based on confidence in stopbank breach repairs have returned the stopbanks on parts of the Tūtaekurī and Ngaruroro rivers to pre-cyclone status of 1:100 year (or a 1 percent chance of being exceeded in any given year).

Regional Council Chair Hinewai Ormsby says, “Releasing another group of property owners is good news for them. I know the staff are working hard to get stopbank repairs assured so more property owners can be similarly released.”

All stopbank breach repairs on the Tūtaekurī and Ngaruroro rivers are complete and those on the Waipawa River are close to completion. Staff are now building back the many scours in stopbanks in the flood protection system.

Maps can be found at:

• https://www.hastingsdc.govt.nz/assets/Document-Library/Cyclone-Land-Categorisation-Hastings-and-Napier/Twyford.pdf
• https://www.hastingsdc.govt.nz/assets/Document-Library/Cyclone-Land-Categorisation-Hastings-and-Napier/Dartmoor-Moteo-Swamp-Rd.pdf

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