TV3 News - Floods and Politics

Friday, 19 November 1999, 6:31 pm
Article: Alastair Thompson

FLOODS - Queenstown - live - Garden and All Blacks - Glenorchy - Cows on Islands - OTHER NEWS PM on offensive on Coast - NZ First troubles - Bradford Assault - Poll

FLOODS: Queenstown - Floods still taking their toll. 11 homes are directly in the path of a Queenstown slip. 30 more homes also evacuated. 80 Frankton Rd residents came to a meeting today. Some families allowed in - with a police escort. Families who are told they aren't allowed back into their houses are upset - "we are really in the poo" says one. Heavy rain forecast could start the slip moving. Waiting for the inevitable is frustrating.

LIVE: Leanne Duncan Live from Queenstown: Blue skies out there but there are worries about rain. We are now waiting to see if it will rain. This is huge for the people whose houses may be lost.

GARDEN AND ALL BLACK JERSEYS: Lakefront retailers are still dealing with the damage. Also a resident Eileen Much lost her 18-year-old garden. It was a magical garden says the bereaved gardener - much visited by tourists. "The atmosphere was very beautiful" - now just a big stream. She says she will start again. Sports clothes retailer with sodden All Black Jerseys says he is history with much of his stock ruined. "Top selling item they were, Sean Fitzpatrick will be gutted."

GLENORCHY: Trampers rescued and evacuated to Glenorchy. Airforce assists in evacuating trampers by helicopter. Roads all washed out. Trampers unaware of the damage. Glenorchy has been flooded badly. Some kids say they are having a good time being in the middle of a bit of 100 year history. Others say it is boring. Slip on a station. Tourists back today. Cleanup now the focus.

COWS ON ISLANDS: Dairy farms in lower Matuara are stranded. Milk will start getting dumped in a day or two.

PM ON OFFENSIVE: The PM went on the offensive against the Greens on the West Coast. Protestor presents the PM with a dead Kereru - native wood-pigeon - "what a hypocrit". PM announces Kiwi sanctuary funding and says - There are potential extremists wishing to seek a part in the Labour Government and the Labour Leader is prepared to accept that, this raises questions for voters. Clark reploed - Mrs Shipley has been ripping into Labour for ten years and frankly I cannot bother replying.
Meanwhile Greens getting more publicity not less.

NZ FIRST TROUBLES: Another NZ First candidate accused of misconduct. In Christchurch - Winston says it is all part of a smear campaign. Ilam candidate Dr Gin is being investigated for an alleged $26 discrepancy!. Press Editor Tim Pankhurst would not be interviewed but stood by his report. Last week it was Suzanne Bruce - this week Dr Gin. Peters says this is the "spineless comeback" of big business interests he has run foul of. ACC spokesman says the corporation will try to sort it out quickly. Meanwhile in the NBR a story accusing NZ First of not paying its bills is also disputed by Peters. But will he be able to prove his conspiracy theory in eight days? - Jane Young.

BRADFORD ASSAULT: Police say they will not charge Max Bradford with assault over student stouch.

POLL: Poll says 80% say they want MPs who resign from parties to resign from parliament.

© Scoop Media

Alastair Thompson

Scoop Publisher

Alastair Thompson is the co-founder of Scoop. He is of Scottish and Irish extraction and from Wellington, New Zealand. Alastair has 24 years experience in the media, at the Dominion, National Business Review, North & South magazine, Straight Furrow newspaper and online since 1997. He is the winner of several journalism awards for business and investigative work.

Contact Alastair Thompson

• Linkedin
• Twitter - @althecat
• Facebook
• Email - alastair@scoop.co.nz