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Reading Time: 3 minutes By David Hill for LDR Kaikōura is like ‘‘a game of two halves’’ as it recovers from last week’s storm and fire events, says a council senior manager. Council corporate services senior manager Peter Kearney said the town was booming with the usual Labour Weekend holiday makers, while volunteers were busy with the clean-up. ‘‘It’s a bit like a game of two halves. We had an horrendous week from Tuesday to Thursday, but it looked like a really busy weekend, with people seeing the best part of the town. ‘‘In contrast, there were locals feeling anxious that it might flair up again.’’ Kearney, who is also a volunteer firefighter, had a busy weekend visiting properties to the north of the town which had been devastated by wind and fire. ‘‘Driving around it’s hard to sense the damage, until you go on the properties.’’ The Kaikōura Volunteer Fire Brigade was kept busy over the weekend with callouts and assisting with clean-up efforts, he said. The brigade normally responded to around 120 callouts in a year, but has received more than half that number in the last week. Fire crews from North Canterbury, Marlborough and Christchurch backed up the local brigade from Tuesday, until they returned home on Friday. Council staff and volunteers fed the fire crews, with support from the local community. ‘‘There has been overwhelming support from the community,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s amazing to see how people have rallied by supporting the emergency services and each other. ‘‘It’s a real privilege to be part of a community like this.’’ The State of Emergency remained in place in Kaikōura on Tuesday, but was expected to be lifted after today’s winds passed. The council has opened a Mayoral Relief Fund to support those impacted by last week’s events. Details on the council website. The State of Emergency was lifted for the rest of Canterbury on Friday, but the Hurunui District Council maintained an Emergency Operations Centre while it monitored clean-up efforts and wild weather on Monday and Tuesday. Council chief executive Hamish Dobbie said he expected to wind down operations on Tuesday afternoon. ‘‘Our rural people have faced a number of challenges so they do take ‘be prepared’ messages seriously.‘‘There are a number of people with windows smashed, vehicle damage and farm fences down, so people are dealing with a lot.’’ North Canterbury lines company MainPower has continued to work on restoring power across the district, while Lewis Pass reopened with restrictions on Saturday afternoon. Like Kaikōura, Hanmer Springs enjoyed a busy Labour Weekend, despite the damage from last week’s winds.Hanmer Springs-based councillor Tom Davies said the hot pools were operating, but mountain bike and walking tracks remain closed. ‘‘Hopefully we can get them open in a few weeks before the school holidays. ‘‘The graveyard has been decimated. It’s quite eerie to see all those old trees down.’’ The Waimakariri District Council stood down its Emergency Operations Centre on Friday, but chief executive Jeff Millward said staff have continued monitor the situation. Clean-up work continues in the west of the district, while pump stations are working normally again with power restored, he said. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
