Fire and Emergency New Zealand has deployed an eight-person specialist water rescue team from Christchurch to Nelson in advance of more heavy rain warnings.

Director Service Delivery Operations Brendan Nally says the team got into place early as Nelson has only two roads into the district, and they are prone to flooding and cutting the district off.

"Our specialist team is on the ground ready to support local brigades if needed when the rain comes," Brendan Nally says.

We are warning people not to drive through any floodwater and to respect all "road closed" signs. "It’s impossible to judge the depth of water so when people become stranded, they are in danger of drowning."

Fire and Emergency is also deploying a four- person wide area damage assessment team to Nelson this morning. These teams are part of Fire and Emergency’s urban search and rescue capability, and they assess whether buildings impacted by floods, landslips and earthquakes are safe to enter.

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