For the families and communities involved, this is hugely disruptive and again shines the spotlight on what is required to mitigate future heavy rainfall events on these low-lying suburbs.
Firstly, credit where it is due. The preparation and response from the Dunedin City Council team was first class.
Even though there was 50ml more rain than the destructive 2015 floods, subsequent investment in pumping infrastructure and, importantly, maintenance of the mud tanks, resulted in less impact.
Lessons were well-learned.
Having witnessed the emergency management team in action, I must congratulate them on their competent and co-ordinated response.
It is one thing preparing plans and procedures, but to implement them in real time, distilling enormous amounts of incoming and incomplete information, is a challenging task. They were running on coffee and adrenaline more than sleep.
Of course, the real heroes are those workers out on the ground in terrible conditions — the roading, water service and lines contractors, the fire service and community volunteers, who often put the needs of the community ahead of their own personal circumstances.
While these events are traumatic, they do bring out the very best in people and communities.
Contrary to some commentary, the South Dunedin Futures project is not a dead duck with government.
It is true the initial proposal was rejected by the Treasury. However, the government remains engaged with how we might support genuine engineering solutions.
The buying out of private properties and managed retreat is not our favoured option. If we were to do so in South Dunedin, we would need to do so elsewhere — literally dozens of other locations nationwide at an enormous expense.
A proposal that incorporated the establishment of a wetland at Forbury Park and supporting pumping capacity is my preference for where co-funding applications should be targeted.
I see this as no different from our investment in extra flood bank protection for the Taieri River in this year’s budget.
I will continue to work with the Dunedin City Council to bring such a proposal forward.
