The people of Wairoa had barely cleaned up the mess after Cyclone Gabrielle when the town flooded again last week.
When heavy rain hit parts of the East Coast last week, more than 400 properties were flooded. The damage to Wairoa from the devastating flooding is expected to top $40 million.
The Wairoa District Council (WDC) has set up a Givealittle page to help raise funds for the recovery. The relief fund has swelled to more than $130,000 so far.
Seven Sharp spoke to Mayor Craig Little yesterday about the situation in Wairoa.
How dire is the situation?
“It’s absolute devastation. I’ve walked the streets, and people don’t know where they’re at. This is something that shouldn’t have happened; it’s not a normal flood, and we’ve flooded where we’ve never flooded before.
“People have cleaned their houses out and are saying to me, ‘Where to from here? We don’t know what to do. We don’t know how we’re going to get back into our homes’.”
What do people need?
“People need money. There’s always going to be the insured and the uninsured, and there’s always going to be criticism like, ‘Well, bugger those who aren’t insured’. This was not their doing, and they’ve lost everything — lost all their possessions; it’s just soul-destroying.”
Are you getting financial support from the Government?
“[Minister] Mark Mitchell has been pretty good. He keeps in touch on a regular basis, but we need those dollars now.
“For me, the Government has a responsibility here, but so does the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. They made a call that didn’t work for us and flooded us. We can’t carry on like this for our future. And there’s no guarantee if we get a rain event tomorrow, that it might happen again.
Mitchell announced today the Government is providing a further $500,000 to the Wairoa Mayoral Relief Fund.
“Today’s additional contribution to the Mayoral Relief Fund will provide support for the community’s immediate and pressing needs, such as section clean ups, replacing clothes and bedding, and the hire and purchase of drying and dehumidifying equipment.”
Has anyone apologised for the flooding?
“Not at all. We’ve had no apology at all. We’re running around underwriting everything. We’ve underwritten $2 million to pick up the waste. We’ve got no money.
“The Hawke’s Bay Regional Council needs to man up. Apologise to the residents of Wairoa; that’ll give them hope there might be some compensation for them. Because, at the moment, we’ve got no hope.”
What’s the feeling among Wairoa residents?
“Cyclone Gabrielle was … people were pretty grumpy then. This is different because it didn’t need to happen. We’ve flooded where we’ve never flooded. And for a simple reason: the water couldn’t get out into the sea because the bar was never opened on time. Let us make that decision here in Wairoa, not in an office three hours away in Napier.”
Why have you set up a Givealittle page?
“Because we need money, and we’re doing everything we can to get money in.”
What’s the response been like?
“Pretty good. People don’t have a lot of money these days to give, but some big companies work out of Wairoa. Come on, help us out here.
“Every dollar you give will go back to the people. Every dollar you give goes back to those poor buggers that have been flooded.
“We need every help we can get.”
