$3m more for Wairoa flood recovery

The government is pumping a further $3 million into Wairoa for its flood recovery.

The announcement comes as Prime Minister Christopher Luxon visited Wairoa on Saturday to inspect the damage.

The region was devastated by rising waters last month, including areas that had never been flooded before.

"The Wairoa District Council has identified what it needs, and this additional funding is immediately available for the work," Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell said.

The funding was set to go towards the clean-up of household waste and sediment for more than 400 properties impacted by last week's weather event.

This included the collection, removal, and disposal of sediment, debris and household waste.

The government has already released $600,000 worth of funding for the town in Hawke's Bay. 

"In total, this means $3.6 million of government funding is available to assist Wairoa communities with the recovery and rebuilding process," Mitchell said.

"Our priority is to ensure that communities can return to normalcy as quickly as possible. We are committed to standing by the people of Wairoa and all affected regions during these challenging times."

Wairoa mayor Craig Little said the extra boost from the government was "huge" and would give people some peace of mind, but the situation was still bad.

"We're quite under the pump ... but to have the backing of the government is huge," Little said. 

"The priority is always going to be the people and their homes, trying to get them sorted and get their rubbish away.

"You can imagine, you've lost your livelihood, all your possessions, everything."

The mayor previously estimated there was about $40 million worth of damage.