Christchurch City Council is having issues with the wastewater system in Aranui and Shirley.
The city council has warned people in parts of the suburbs to conserve water and avoid flushing toilets due to wastewater issues caused by flooding.
The following streets have been affected:
Aranui
Warden Street
Shirley
Cargill Place
North Parade
Hope Street
Hercules Street
The council currently has sucker trucks out to help with the situation but for the next 24 hours residents in the area are asked to avoid doing washing, and to flush toilets only when absolutely necessary.
Canterbury Civil Defence Response Centre Manager Janelle Mackie said this morning rivers were generally dropping but that can bring its own challenges.
"While people may see the rivers dropping, they should be really conscious that this event is not over yet."
There have been flooding issues in the Mackenzie District and Waimate has rivers that are higher than usual but there are no major concerns for those areas at the moment.
She said there are ongoing issues in the Selwyn district.
"It takes quite a while for the water to move down to the catchment, as of last night and into this morning, it's been affecting the State Highway 1 bridge.
Mackie said there are teams on the ground now but access is an issue due to road closures in the district.
People need to remember that there will be a "tail" to the bad weather, she said.
"Some people will be able to return home but if there are houses that have been inundated with floodwaters that is going to drag on for a period of time as they are assessed."
"It was serious flooding, just about coming over the riverbank. There were holes penetrating through the riverbank causing flooding into the huts which was getting a bit scary."
McLintock said it was even scarier because he had his son with him.
When asked why he did not evacuate yesterday, McLintock said he had tried to brave it out.
"We've been there before in similar circumstances, no holes in the bank though previously so that was getting a bit scary."
The severe weather has also forced the closure of three South island rail links.
The Midland line between Rolleston and Arthur’s Pass, the Main North Line between Christchurch and Pines, and the Main South Line between Lyttelton and Timaru are all closed.
A KiwiRail spokesperson said all the lines except the main north line were shut on Sunday morning.
The line between Timaru and Bluff remains open.
"KiwiRail staff will need to inspect the lines before any decision is made on re-opening them," the spokesperson said.
